


Complications of the Girl

by Stephaniexx



Series: Complications of Love [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: AND complicated feelings, Adulting, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Cheating, Cora Hale loves Lydia Martin, Domestic Fluff, F/F, F/M, Getting Back Together, Jealousy, Living Together, Lydia Martin loves Cora Hale, Mild Smut, Relationship Struggles, TOO MUCH LOVE, Teen Wolf, college .. kind of
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-05
Updated: 2018-07-27
Packaged: 2019-03-27 13:58:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 5
Words: 28,138
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13882323
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stephaniexx/pseuds/Stephaniexx
Summary: "When things break, it's not the actual breaking that prevents them from getting back together again. It's because little pieces get lost - the two remaining ends couldn't fit together even if they wanted to. The whole shape has changed."- David LevithanLydia and Cora revisit their past and decide it's time to rekindle what they had. They dive head first into their love with no care for precaution and bask in the happiness that it brings them. But what happens when all that lost love and lust disappears? What happens when it's time to face the hidden and forgotten truths?





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

> Stiles and Derek are in this chapter as a final goodbye to their own story, Complications of the Heart. From this chapter on it will strictly be Cora and Lydia's story about their new life in their new city with their new friends. I hope you guys enjoy this as much as you enjoyed part 1!!
> 
> p.s. if you didn't read part 1 of this story, then that's fine because there aren't many essential details from that part that you need to know!!

Cora, Derek, and Stiles had been sitting in the Jeep, waiting for about two hours now; sticking out like sore thumbs. After much prodding, Stiles never gave into Derek’s plea to get a new car so, here they are, sitting in an old, beat up, sky blue Jeep that’s older than its owner, as they wait around the wealthy and elite Cambridge neighborhood that Lydia lives in.

When Cora arrived at their apartment earlier in the week, they thought she was joking about her plan - well her lack of one. There was no way that she could be stupid enough to believe that Lydia would be pleased with a surprise visit and a declaration of love. They went along with the girl, thinking that when she was ready to leave she’d asked them to drop her at the airport and not Massachusetts. Yet, here they are, in Boston, waiting for Lydia to come home so Cora can make her love known.

Stiles thought it was a horribly careless idea, he knew Lydia too well to ever think otherwise, but he didn’t voice his opinion. Cora was always there with the others when he and Derek were going through their issues, and she never told them to just give up. So, he went along and let her live out the fantasy of going cross country to get the girl.

Derek, on the other hand, made it very clear that he was opposed to this idea. Back in New York, he kept dropping hints that if Cora really did go through with this, then she was being stupid. He had become the king of passive aggressiveness, purposely whispering everything he had to say even though he knew she would still hear. Stiles tried getting him to take it easy on the girl, but Derek was adamant with his opinion that the two needed to fully end whatever was left between them and learn to live without the other. Derek had absolutely refused to waste his weekend driving five hours to and from Boston, but, again, here they are, stuffed in a car that smells of curly fries and cotton car fresheners.

“I think this is a sign, Co. You come all the way here, and she happens to not be home?” Derek tries, making his voice a little softer to try and lure the girl.

“Nah .. I think she’s just caught up in a class or something. Double majors are extremely tough, dude.” Stiles turned to Derek, smirking at the defeated look on his face as his attempt fails _again_.

Stiles snorts, “Yeah, only Lydia Martin would double major in chemical engineering and math. I would honestly kill myself by the end of the first week.” Cora hums in response, Derek just rolls his eyes and looks out the window in annoyance. The two talk some more, voices rising by the second along with Derek’s irritation. He’s long gotten used to Stiles’ loud voice, but it seems that once he’s paired with another loud person, his own tone rises five times in competition causing the wolf’s attempt to nap to be completely blown out the window.

“This neighborhood is so extravagant,” Cora says, glancing around at the high story buildings and expensive cars. The Hales aren’t any strangers to wealth, they just don’t flaunt it the way the Martins and the Whittemore’s do - unless you count their house, Peter and Laura’s ridiculously high-class cars, and Derek’s vintage Camaro. But, come on, Lydia is living in a house by herself that can house about six other college kids. Her neighbors look like they all vacation in the Hamptons to play tennis or jet to Positano to swim, send their kids away to boarding school in Europe, have fencing competitions for fun and gulp down gold-flaked champagne for every meal. Derek struggles to see how Cora expects to fit in here; it looks like lights are out by seven because they only party hard on their yachts so their houses don’t get dirty.

“Uh, how long do you expect to stay here, Cora?” He asks, glancing back at the girl in the mirror.

She shrugs, “As long as she’ll have me, I guess.”

Derek huffs, “Cora, come on yo-“

Stiles quickly interjects, voice softer than Derek’s. “Cora, maybe you should have talked to Lydia first?”

“Yeah, you really should have! Cora, this,” He points to her and around the neighborhood, “is not healthy. Just waiting around for someone and being completely dependent on them is not a good idea, because what happens if she wants you now but not in four months? “As long as she wants me”, really?? You aren’t disposable, so stop acting like it!” Derek finishes with a sigh, fully facing his sister who’s silent, eyes roaming all over his face as Stiles suffers in the silence.

“Derek,” She starts and Stiles sinks further into his seat. “I know you’re just being a worried big brother, but I’m allowed to make my own decisions. I appreciate you wanting to protect me and be there for me, but save it for if I get my heart broken.” Her voice is as hard as her face, daring him to continue.

He rolls his eyes, “More like _when_ yo-“ Stiles hits Derek’s arm and shoots him a glare that closes his mouth and shuts him up. He could argue with Cora about this all day and night because they’re siblings, and that’s what siblings do, but he definitely would not try to challenge the look on Stiles’s face.

“I’m sorry. You’re right. I’ll let you live your life and make your own decisions as an adult.” He says, sending Cora a smile that she returns before leaning forward to kiss her brother’s cheek. “Thank you. Plus, it’s not like I’m planning on marriage and babies,” The girl quickly grabs Stiles’s left hand and traces the silver exterior of the ring on his finger. “Unlike _some_ _people_ , I don’t want to be engaged at nineteen!” Stiles laughs, snatching his hand out of the girl’s grip before helping Derek to playfully shove her back into the backseat.

They were all laughing obnoxiously, preparing for one of Lydia’s snobby neighbors to call the cops and report a suspicious and cheap car lurking around, when Stiles spotted a batch of red hair coming down the block. He gasps, throwing his head out of the window to make sure there isn’t another strawberry-blonde haired girl wearing a very expensive looking blue button-up with a red leather skirt. She has her bag on her side and books in her hand, confirming the theory that the girl was tied up at school and not out with someone she met.

“The eagle has landed. I repeat the eagle has landed!” Stiles says, changing his voice to sound like he’s speaking into a walkie-talkie. Cora rolls her eyes, hitting his head to tell him to shut up. They all watch as Lydia walks up to her stairs, hand digging through her bag as she searches for what must be her keys. Cora growls deep in her throat, and Derek can feel her emotions skyrocketing. He reaches back, placing a strong grip on the younger wolf’s neck as she eagerly leans into the touch. They stare at each other, eyes glowing blue and yellow as they share a silent conversation; their bond, not only as wolves but as brother and sister more evident than ever. The girl opens the car door, taking a deep breath as she slowly walks to the bottom of the steps right as Lydia finally gets her front door open.

“Should your key be that deep in your bag? It’s dangerous in this world nowadays.” Cora starts, trying her complete hardest, and failing, to not break into the widest smile as Lydia stills.

“I thought you were one of the most powerful Banshee slash witches on the planet? Thought you would’ve sensed my presence by now or something.” Lydia spins around at that, smirking as she throws Cora off balance with just the lift of an eyebrow.

“Want to tell me what you’re doing here?” She asks, coming slowly down the small set of stairs.

Cora shrugs, “You know why I’m here, Lyds,” Lydia gives the girl a pointed look, crossing her arms as she reaches the last step. She’s looking down at the wolf, almost like some sort of power play as they stare into one another’s eyes. Derek and Stiles are holding their breaths, both expecting nothing but the worst.

“We planned for you to come in March, so why are you here almost two months early?” Cora shrugs again, passing her hand through her dark brown hair with a cheeky smile.

“Surprise?” The couple in the car are left stunned as Lydia laughs and wraps her arms around Cora’s neck as they begin to kiss. It’s a scene for the books and Stiles can’t help snapping a quick picture despite his confusion. The two are full ongoing at it on the sidewalk causing Derek to dramatically gag at the sounds of heavy breathing and low moans.

Stiles is the first one out of the car, marching forward to demand answers with Derek hot behind his heels. They wait as patiently as possible for the two to let go for some air, but Stiles’s tapping foot showed that he was waiting for some answers. Lydia pulls back first, glancing at the couple and stepping back in shock. She gives Cora another look, failing to be annoyed when the girl, again, says, “Surprise?”

“And what are you two doing here?” She asks, looking the three of them over.

“We were kind enough to be little miss impulsive’s chauffeurs. Drove for five hours, both of us nervous as hell and not ready for the awkward drive back when you’d slam the door in her face! Only to see a romantic comedy-esque reunion kiss? We want answers! Now!” Cora is ridiculously close to Lydia as she presses herself against the girl. She doesn’t even look guilty, just has a very pleased look on her face, not caring that Derek looks so disgusted at the smell of lust in the air.

“I _did_ tell you guys that everything would be fine!” She insists, throwing her arms up in exasperation when Derek rolls his eyes. He felt like a teenage girl for the number of times he’s rolled his eyes for the day, but Cora just had that effect on him. Before the man can talk, they all turn to Lydia at the sound of her high and loud gasp.

“Are those _rings_ on your fingers??” She grabs both of their hands, staring at the matching bands as her mouth psychically drops. “Did you two get hitched? Oh my goodness, that is so _cheap_!” She screams, eyes still glued to their rings.

“They aren’t married,” Cora answers, this time being the one to roll her eyes.

“No?” Lydia frowns.

“No. We’re engaged.” Derek answers. Lydia gasps again, causing all three of them to laugh.

“Surprise?” The couple says in unison, voices high with guilt.

~

The girls had begun talking again since about October after Cora collected some courage and video called Lydia out of the blue. After a little silence and awkwardness, they fell into easy conversation. First, they only talked about Lydia’s new school and new house and her new city and new friends. Then, things went to relationships and hookups, and suddenly one drunken night turned a conversation about organic peanut butter at the farmer’s market to a conversation about the past. Cora cried, Lydia cried, then they agreed to a certain time for Cora to come visit. They weren’t official, but they seemed pretty much on track for getting back together. It was weird, extremely, seeing the two so intimate again after all this time and everything that went down, but Stiles couldn’t help feeling happy for them. They were finally doing all that they needed to do - talk.

Lydia had convinced the boys to stay for the weekend, clearing her schedule so they could all catch up and she could show them around her town. Neither of the men had anything that couldn’t be rescheduled back in New York, so they agreed and got the night started with a few drinks from Lydia’s mini bar. Both the wolves sat in her “lounge area” as they watched the two people they loved the most roam around.

Lydia’s house was even more amazing on the inside. Stiles had seen bits of it from when he and Lydia would FaceTime, but seeing it in person had him in shock. Everything was the perfect mix of modern yet vintage, with splashes of pink and white all over. The sight of three floors, five bedrooms, six bathrooms, an office, gigantic kitchen and a finished basement had Stiles ready to move in. He and Lydia talked amongst themselves, laughing loudly when she told the story of almost letting out a small, yet deadly, scream at a man who tried taking her limited edition rug from France out of her cart. Derek watched him as he looked around in awe and chuckled every time he heard another dramatic _“Wow”_.

“Thinking of getting a new apartment?” Cora asks as she slides on the couch, closer to her brother. He looks around, taking in the beauty of the house and shrugs, “Maybe in a year or so. We’re happy where we are.”

“Yeah? You guys are engaged, and I bet you’ll be married soon because we all know you don’t have patience. After that wedding, you’ll start thinking of little babies ... babies with claws that will turn that cute little apartment into a zoo.” Derek laughs, shoving her shoulder and shrugging his again. “We’re taking our time and enjoying it.” He looks over at Stiles again, beginning to feel the need to be near him as he thinks of their future.

Despite being human, Stiles was still Derek’s mate, so there were certain emotions of Derek’s that Stiles could feel. He felt the longing coming off of the man so he made his way back over to him, smothering him with kisses as he teased him for being a needy baby. Cora took Stiles’s place at Lydia’s side, inching closer and closer before finally hooking their pinkies together. Derek didn’t quite know how to feel about the complicated duo’s secret rekindling, but he’d keep quiet in fear of angering his sister and ruining the happy mood - Laura would definitely be getting a call on his way home.

“Ok, we’re going out tonight! It’s a Friday and I’m ready to get drunk!” Lydia yelled, swaying back and forth as Cora’s arms wrap around her waist. “And to celebrate my arrival,” The brunette adds in, leaning forward to nose her way down her girl’s throat.

“No excessive pda, please, ladies.” Stiles quips, smiling when Cora spitefully starts scenting the girl. “I had to listen to you pant and whine for my brother four times since I arrived in New York! Four times in five days! _“Derek, oh Derek, oh my gosh, Derek. Harder, please, please, please!”_ So, you can deal with this.” She finishes her rant by grabbing Lydia’s face and kissing her hard. Derek’s face is red with embarrassment and laughter when he buries it in Stiles’ neck.

Lydia drags them out of the house and has to practically pry Stiles’s fingers off of the steering wheel. He’s gotten used to, and tired, of walking everywhere in the city, so he was hoping to drive to the unspecified location Lydia was taken them, but she insisted that they walk. _“It’s an unknown city for you guys! We have to explore by foot!”_ They all walked in unison, Derek’s huge arm thrown over Stiles’s shoulder in a way that seemed like regular couple touching, but Stiles knew it was for protection. Cora and Lydia were beside them, practically glued together and turning every ten steps or so to kiss.

They stop right outside of a small bar called _Coyote_. The difference in location was evident, Lydia’s neighborhood was all high class and stocked with lounges and resorts where customers could only use black or platinum cards. Whereas this neighborhood was way more chilled down, allowing them to see the real Boston; groups passing as they yelled and loudly talked about hockey or baseball or whatever people from Massachusetts talk about with their infectious and thick accents. The lighting of the bar was dim, music hitting them in the face as soon as the door opened. It was packed tight, people squeezing and sitting in every corner as they drank, played pool, talked, danced, and flirted. There was a comforting aura about the place, something that felt familiar to Derek that he couldn’t yet identify. Lydia walked in like she owned the place, finding them the one open table near the main bar. They all sit, Lydia looking so comfortable you’d think it was her couch, as the three others curiously looked around.

“You come here often, babe?” Cora asked, immediately scooting her chair closer when a man nodded hello at the Banshee.

“Yeah she does and she’s a real pain in the ass!” A foreign voice adds in, lifting an eyebrow when all three heads whip towards her. She chuckles, leaning down to place the two pitchers of beer onto the table and pouring it into cups for them.

“Lyds is always here making demands and causing trouble like she owns the place.” The woman says, smirking when Lydia blows her a cheeky kiss.

“ _Lyds_?” Cora asks, turning towards the girl with raised brows as she silently questions the nickname. Is that jealousy Derek smells?

“I’m Malia,” They all eye her, her hair is dark brown, falling down to her shoulders with hints of blonde. She’s obviously young, around their age, looking no more than twenty-two. She puts her hand out, greeting both Stiles and Derek first. When she gets to Cora, the wolf takes a minute to stare the girl down, only returning the gesture when Lydia shoves her knee. Stiles and Derek shift awkwardly, both trying to think of something to say to prevent tension.

“Is it always this packed in here?” Stiles asks, taking another look around the room. He felt something suspicious in his chest, glancing at Derek to see that he wasn’t the only one that noticed.

“Well, it’s the best damn bar for fae in the entire state of Massachusetts, so yeah.” She answers, looking around with pride as a few bar-goers respond with cheers of agreement. A lightbulb goes off in the Stiles’ brain; he _knew_ something was different.

Derek laughs, “I had a feeling something was up. We just can’t get away, huh?” He says, taking a quick swig of the drink. “Well, this is the best balance of wolfsbane and alcohol that I’ve ever tasted, so I’ll give you that.” He nods, tilting his cup towards Cora to taste.

“We usually don’t let your kind in here too often,” Malia says, looking at Stiles as she pulls up a chair to sit at their table. Derek immediately slings his hand behind his fiancé’s chair, taking note of the other fae in the room who grunted in response. “But, I know you’re practically an honorary wolf, and being the _Mate of an Alpha’s son_ and Lydia’s dear friend, you’re more than welcome.” Derek smiles, knowing she said the part about being an Alpha’s son-in-law louder for the other supernaturals in the bar to hear. He nods his head towards the girl in thanks, clinking cups with her before they both drink some more.

Stiles leans forward, “And I’m guessing Lydia told you all of this?” She nods, “So, you’re a waitress at the “best bar in Boston for fae” that doesn’t allow humans, so what are you?” Stiles knows it isn’t exactly “polite” to just outright ask someone what they are, but, come on, everyone in here, with the exception of himself, is some type of supernatural.

“Dude, first off, I’m the owner, and I said the best bar in the whole state,” Stiles laughs and apologizes, “and I’m a were-coyote.” She admits, stunning those around her except for Lydia.

“I can’t tell you the last time I heard about one of you guys,” Derek says, taking another sip of his beer, and nudging Stiles’ cup that’s filled with regular beer, urging him to try it.

Lydia giggled, “Yeah, she’s some type of mystery, huh?” Malia blows the girl a kiss, spitefully winking at Cora who’s glaring back.

“Werecoyote’s are quite a ... messy mix.” Cora says sitting up in her seat and showing Derek that she’s ready for a challenge. What did he get himself into?

“Eh,” She shrugs, “There are some anger issues but, hey, nothing some alcohol can’t fix!” She raises her cup, gathering some more cheers from around the bar and downing more than half of her drink.

Lydia dramatically rolls her eyes, “Don’t listen to her. Since I’ve known her, I’ve done some mild mental spells. Calms her down and makes her not so,” she stops, trying to think of the exact word to use.

“Pent-up.” Malia finishes for the girl. “Lyds really helps. I had my own regimens before, but whatever _witchcraft_ she puts on me now is incredible,” Everyone around the table laughs except for Cora who continues to eye the two.

“If it takes spells to calm you down then should you even be around people?” Cora grunts. Malia lets out a genuine laugh, shrugging her shoulders and refilling Derek’s cup.

Stiles turns to Derek, smiling when he sees the man trying to hide his own laugh. Lydia looks at the two of them, laughing too, shrugging her shoulders and mouthing _“I’m not getting in the middle”_.

Derek speaks up, “I never knew there was such a large community of supernaturals in Boston.”

“There’s not that much. Most move to New York because humans are more tolerant over there when they find out. Over here, they find out and they treat us like we’re some type of zodiac killer cannibals,” Stiles can’t help but laugh at the reference and the collective groan from around the bar - the people here sure as nosy.

“Which is why,” Lydia adds in, urging Malia to finish what she has to say. The coyote smirks, taking another sip of her beer before finishing. “Which is why it’s a known rule to kill any human that’s not exactly _nice_ when they find out.” Cora, Stiles and Derek’s mouths all drop in shock. Malia and Lydia just laugh, both drinking as the three look around the table with wide eyes.

Stiles’ expression is a mixture of amusement and disturbance, “Did you just admit to murder so nonchalantly?” Malia shrugs, “Suddenly I feel like my drink has been poisoned by a cannibal serial killer.” He whispers to Derek.

A flock of jet black hair comes out of nowhere, flying over to Malia to stand behind the girl’s chair. They all stare, except for Lydia who takes the moment to check her phone, as the random girl leans her body over Malia’s, peppering her face with kisses. After a moment, she looks up, grinning widely at them all.

“Is she taunting you guys about stories of killing humans?” She asks, talking to and smiling at them as if they’ve all been best friends for years. “Just in time because I haven’t even gotten to the actual stories yet!” Malia yells.

“Gosh, I apologize for her, I’ve told her countless times to stop traumatizing people the first five minutes she meets them. I’m Kira by the way, this crazy one’s girlfriend.” Cora leans back into her seat, chuckling with a tint of relief as she finally takes a swig of the beer. She gasps, “This is really good!” Derek and Stiles share a knowing look, shaking their heads as they all greet Kira who goes to sit on her girlfriend's lap.

Kira leans forward, “Lydia, did you hear about professor James?” The two start talking amongst themselves, ignoring the other four people on the table.

“So, tell me, what things did you two have to deal with over in sunny California? I always ask Lydia but all she does is get this wary look on her face and change the subject.” The three Beacon Hills natives all stare at each other and sigh at the same time. Every time they tell people they’re from California, everyone starts asking about Los Angeles and the beach and Rodeo fucking Drive.

Stiles leans forward, “Trust me, Beacon Hills is everything but sunny. Even on the hottest days, it’s foggy and cloudy. Supernaturals from all over the _globe_ come trying to take over the town like every other day, people go missing for five years then pop up with fangs, we have a mental institution that’s more like a bed and breakfast for humans born from the seed of the _devil_ to freely torture fae, we had to fight an Alpha pack led by a blind psychotic and sociopathic genius, that one over there almost blew down the whole town to kill some century old witches, there were berserkers roaming town, one of our pack mate’s grandfather and aunt tried killing members of our pack multiple times, and I got possessed by a _fucking Nogitsune_ all because I decided to partake in a sacrifice!” Stiles finishes with a heavy sigh, closing his eyes and throwing his head back to gulp down the rest of his beer. Derek rubs his neck for comfort and when he opens his eyes, everyone in the room is staring at their table. He loves his hometown but it sure is a shit show back there.

“If any of you have any spare time, make sure to visit Beacon Hills, California!” Cora yells into the room, breaking the silence and causing everyone else in the bar to erupt into laughter and go back to what they were doing.

Kira frowns, “Ever since Lydia told me that Nogitsune story, I always tell her I wish I knew her back then! I totally could have helped!”

Cora scoffs, “Yeah? What are you, some over-excited hunter?” She shakes her head in disbelief, “I don’t think anything could’ve helped us with that thing. I was only two seconds away from just killing Stiles myself! We still don’t even know how it went away.”

Kira, Lydia, and Malia all burst into laughter at the same time. “Are we missing something?” Derek asks, reaching for the pitcher to fill his cup up again and avoiding the pointed look Stiles gives him.

“The Nogitsune in you guy’s town? That was totally my mom, sh-” Kira’s way too enthusiastic when she says that and now Stiles really has the feeling that his drink has been poisoned by a set of lesbian serial killers.

“Your _mom_ possessed me?!” He’s almost screaming. Kira laughs again, oblivious to how angry and terrified she’s making him.

“No, no,” she has to take a minute, holding her stomach to try and control her laughter. “My mom and I stopped the Nogitsune! We’re _Kitsune’s_!”

Stiles frowns, sitting back in his seat as he rubs his head in thought. “Oh my gosh, I can’t believe I never thought of this,” He turns to his fiancé and shakes his head. “I bet Deaton knew. When we go back home, I’m gonna kill him, and you’re gonna help!” Derek cups the boy's jaw, planting a soft kiss on his cheek, “Of course I will. Now tell me what this epiphany you just had is all about.”

“Nogitsune’s are just dark kitsune’s and Kitsune’s are the only people that can kill Nogitsune’s! I don’t exactly know how but, I’m _guessing_ Kira’s mom summoned him from Beacon Hills and killed him herself!” He whispers yells, mimicking a bomb coming from his head. In turn, Derek and Cora look to Kira for further explanation who’s still smiling wide.

“I’ve never met a human who knows more about the mysteries of the supernatural world than actual fae,” she smiles fondly at Stiles, “but, yeah, my mom is actually the one responsible for summoning that piece of shit in 1940 something then killing and burying it in you guy’s nemeton back in Beacon Hills. She happened to share some type of weird and unexplainable bond with it, so when he awoke again she felt it. She says it was a piercing pain in her chest and she got like flashes of you guy’s pack and him in her mind, but she couldn’t do anything about it yet because it was too early and he’d catch on and end up killing Stiles spitefully. So she waited until he got powerful and distracted enough while possessing you before summoning him over to us. He possessed my very human father then we expelled him out and trapped him again.”

Stiles mimics his mind being blown some more before Derek grabs his hands to stop him. The group spends the rest of the night talking, drinking and laughing. Derek has to calm Stiles down multiple times after he gets worked up over story after story of Kira and Malia’s. They’ve both been through so much in their own supernatural worlds and Derek can’t help but wish they were there to help out the Hale pack through all the shit they went through back home. At one in the morning, they thought it was almost time to leave then even more people walked in, wings out in the open and everything. Stiles was slumped against Derek, eyes batting closed, and Derek’s stomach was full of beer which had him nearing sleep too. Lydia and Kira were just talking and talking, their energy seeming ever-existent, and Derek could tell Cora was tired too.

“Ok, I’m gonna take him back to the house,” Derek announces, helping Stiles up and wrapping his arms around him. Lydia boos, holding up her beer and taking another swig. “Domesticity has turned you guys to bores! It’s only,” she checks her watch and scoffs, “1:45!”

She looks at Stiles, who’s almost snoring on his fiancé’s shoulder and coos at the sleepy boy. “Aww, little Bambi is tired. Ok, here’s my key, go hitch a taxi and put the little baby to bed.” Derek hoists Stiles up some more, trying to wake him up enough so he can walk outside. “Cora, you coming?” He asks. The girl glances up, eyes glossed, but she shakes her head no. Derek laughs at his sister, seeing how tired she is but knowing she only wants to stay because of Lydia, so he leaves it alone and goes outside to call a taxi.

~

Stiles hugs Lydia one last time before jumping into the driver’s seat and Derek comes out of the house, throwing all the snacks that Stiles stole from Lydia’s kitchen into the passenger seat. He walks back to his sister and hugs her tight, scenting and sniffing at her with no care that they’re in public. The younger girl holds him back, growling and softly pawing at his neck.

“These wolves are so overdramatic,” Lydia whispers, yelping in surprise when they both grab her and bring her into their embrace. Before long, they all feel another body bouldering into them. Stiles sniffs, “Aww! I couldn’t resist joining in!” Everyone laughs, holding onto and scenting one another. When they let go, Stiles and Lydia leave the siblings alone to be with each other, looking like they might never let go again.

“We can visit any weekend, it’s only a five-hour drive,” Stiles says, trying to ease the hurt look off of Derek and Cora’s faces

Lydia nods, “Yeah, I should have been visiting way more. Sorry about that,” She leans her elbow on Stiles’ shoulder, taking a picture when Derek and Cora hug each other even tighter.

“Ok, we gotta go,” Derek says, his voice low in the way Stiles knows it gets when he’s getting emotional. He hurries over to the wolf, hugging him in support as he kisses his sister’s forehead one last time.

“I love you.” They both say at the same time. Lydia comes over, holding onto Cora’s side after hugging both Derek and Stiles one last time. The men get into the Jeep, buckling up and starting the engine.

“Make sure to send me those wedding invitation samples!” Lydia yells, smiling at Derek’s loud and rare laugh. They drive off, both waving until they reach the end of the block and make the turn to head back home to Manhattan.

It’s just the two of them now, Cora and Lydia, alone with their relationship and problems that need to be faced. Lydia kisses Cora’s cheek, running her hands through her dark hair. “What do you want for lunch?” She asks.

Cora smirks, “You.” She puts on a sultry voice and they both burst into laughter. Lydia rolls her eyes, holding onto Cora’s hand as she drags her inside the house.

“Please, stop touching me!” She screams playfully, giggling as Cora kisses her neck before slamming the door shut.


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Sleep well?” She kisses Cora softly, cupping her cheek lovingly.
> 
> “The best I have in months,” Cora kisses Lydia again, staring into her eyes with a smirk. “and I know you had something to do with it.”
> 
> Lydia gasps, “Me?! I had nothing to do with that, I promise! My couches are just perfect.” She kisses Cora’s nose before heading back to her vanity. “Go get ready, don’t forget we have that dinner at my friend’s house.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soo sorry for taking this long to update this chapter but senior year duties has been kicking my butt! This is a happy chapter or a slightly anxious one for those who catch onto the slight foreshadowing hints! I'll make sure to upload chapters more consistently from here on out seeing as it's only five chapters! I hope everyone that reads it likes it!!

Lydia’s eyes flutter open, letting out small whines at the little amounts of sunshine peeking through her bedroom window. She looks around the room, mind foggy with sleep and the events of the night before as her eyes drift down to the clock near her bedside table reading 9 a.m. She knows it’s Sunday because last night she and Cora got all dolled up and went out with Kira and Malia for a “girl’s night/double date” out on the town. Cora had the amazing idea to go bar-hopping and Malia, always having to defend her honor as being the resident party animal, agreed. So the four girls roamed around the Boston area, Lydia refusing to admit the stabbing pain in her feet from her ridiculously high and expensive heels, as Cora and Malia competed.

Lydia picks up her phone, yawning as she checks and replies to emails before getting out of bed to grab her planner, running her hands through her hair as she beings preparing for the upcoming week. She doesn’t have classes until Tuesday due to the obsessive and overachieving behavior that allows her to take certain days off. As much as she enjoys laying in bed and lounging around all day, she needs something to do on a day off. So the girl thinks up and writes down an activity for her and Cora to do tomorrow to keep them busy. Boston is too beautiful and busy a city for them to be in the house all day. After almost an hour of being productive in bed, she slumps into her overly-planned out and decorated bathroom that Cora often makes jokes about, but, come on, she really needs her bathroom to be perfect.

One of the many perks of being half witch is having the secret recipe to instantly cure hangovers. She does her “magic”, as Malia calls it, and hops into the shower, humming as the room instantly begins to fill with fog and smoke, loving the feel of the water on her face and her body as she washes away the night before. She gets out, prepping and lathering her skin with all of her “old lady” serums and creams that Cora mocks, but secretly love. The girl is probably downstairs making breakfast, as usual, because Lydia can’t cook to save her life, so she hurries to comb through her long red hair before leaving their room. It isn’t until she’s almost at the bottom step that the smell of pancakes hits her, and she immediately begins walking faster to the kitchen where she sees Cora reaching into the cupboard, grabbing two plates and hooking a mug with her spare pinky.

“I can hear you breathing,” Lydia laughs and fully enters the room, “grab that bowl of fruit for me please,” She listens, picking up the bowl of mixed fruit from the counter as she takes it to the breakfast nook that’s already set with two plates, coffee for Cora and a tea kettle for Lydia. She pops a watermelon square in her mouth as she sits, looking out the window to observe the Boston morning. The weather is extremely bipolar right now due to the everlasting winter and the upcoming spring; one minute her classes are being canceled because of snow, then two days later she and Cora can have a picnic in sixty-degree weather.

Cora finally makes it over and they both fill their plates in silence. Before Lydia can take her first bite, Cora quickly kisses her, Lydia giggling as she leans away when the girl tries to deepen it. “It’s a beautiful day,” Cora mumbles as she takes a sip of her steaming hot black coffee. “I wish we could have breakfast outside but it’s the fucking tundra out there.” Lydia laughs, grabbing the girl’s hand to warm them on her own. She knows that Cora isn’t actually cold because she’s a healthy wolf whose “body temperature adjusts based on her surroundings”, but she entertains her anyway. Since Cora got to Boston almost a month ago, she’s always complained about the weather, constantly objecting when Lydia forces her to wear a coat in public to avoid weird looks from strangers and always moaning about the wind or the snow or the ice even if it doesn’t bother her.

“It’ll warm up soon,” Lydia says, kissing the girl’s hand before dropping it to continue eating.

Cora snorts, “Yeah? When exactly will that be, love?” She gets up to go refill her coffee, ignoring Lydia’s loudly annoying remark that coffee is as addicting as heroin.

“It’ll be warm by the beginning of May!” Lydia laughs at the girl's dramatic expression, stealing a strawberry from her almost empty plate.

When they’re finished with breakfast they both curl up in the living room under Lydia’s pink, knitted blanket as they avoid the dishes in the sink. Cora turns the tv on, letting Lydia lean against her chest as she does some work on her laptop. Cora takes a sneak at the screen from time to time, looking down fondly as she quickly fills out and answers equations that would have her throwing herself off of a bridge. She loves Sundays; she and Lydia usually spend the entire day lounging, catching up on missed shows or movies, playing music when they’re tired of tv, or Lydia will read a couple chapters of whatever book she’s currently obsessed with to Cora as they take turns combing their fingers through each other’s hair. If need be, they clean up around the house, Cora always running to clean the kitchen because it’s the easiest and sticking Lydia with the bedroom and bathrooms. They usually cook on Sunday’s or invite Kira and Malia over for takeout and a trashy movie. Sunday’s are Cora’s favorite day of the week because she gets to bask in the wonder that is her girlfriend all day.

She’ll never get tired of watching her; watching her cook, intensely search for a good movie to watch, get entranced in a book, talk on the phone, laugh - gosh that laugh that can cure any ailment in Cora’s mind. It’s a little funny when Lydia gets too worked up over something, something that’s usually out of her control, and starts cutely playing with her hair - putting it into a bun or a ponytail, braiding then unbraiding it, and whatever else she can think of that marks Cora’s cue that the girl needs a breather, that she needs a hug or a kiss or a day out of the house that she’s too prideful to ask for. Cora always knows. She’ll _always_ know what Lydia needs.

After finally getting up to clean the kitchen, Cora heads upstairs to shower while Lydia runs outside to check the mail that’s been there since Friday. She takes a moment to look around before heading back in, smiling at the dogs trotting by with brand-name sweaters on that matches their owners’. When she gets back inside she can hear Cora fumbling around upstairs, so she begins searching for another movie for them to watch, something light that they don’t really have to pay attention to. Cora leaps over the back of the couch, giving herself a mini cheer for sticking the landing before getting comfortable on the couch. They twist and turn, trying to find the most comfortable position as their legs and arms intertwine under the blanket. Ten minutes into the movie, Lydia eyes are already heavy and hearing Cora yawn over and over doesn’t make it any better.

She yawns again, “I always made fun of Stiles and Derek but, gosh.” Lydia giggled, already knowing what the girl is referencing to. “Domesticity really does make you lazy.” They laugh and curl more into the other and they’re both heavily asleep on the couch twenty minutes later, the movie long forgotten.

Cora wakes up to the sound of people laughing near her. She opens her eyes, Lydia is sitting on the other side of the couch, laughing loudly as she talks with Kira and Malia who are curled into each other on the other couch. She begins to sit up, stretching her legs, yawning and looking at the three loud girls.

“What s’funny?” She mumbles, wanting to go right back to her nap. Lydia smiles, opening her arms to invite the sleepy girl to come lay down on her lap.

“Kira “accidentally-on- _purpose_ ” electrocuted her lab partner who tried touching her ass!” They all begin to laugh again, Cora chuckling as she gets comfortable. She knows the pain the perv must’ve been in because one drunken night she made the girl electrocute her to see how it felt, and it was not a good experience at all. Lydia bends to kiss her forehead before scratching through her hair, running her fingers along her scalp, luring the wolf right back into a deep slumber.

“I swear you could make a raging cyclops fall asleep by running your fingers along their scalp,” Malia says, looking at Cora who’s already softly snoring with her face settled on her girlfriend’s thighs.

The banshee winks, “Well, let’s say I put a little something extra in my fingers this time,” she waggles her fingers at the girl.

“Careful Lyds, this is Massachusetts after all and _Salem_ isn’t too far away. We wouldn’t want another repeat of the 1600s.” Kira bursts out laughing, slapping her hand over to mouth to stifle the noise.

Lydia waves her hand in dismissal, “Don’t worry, she won’t be waking up anytime soon, especially not over any noise.”

“What’s the need for the sleeping spell?” Kira asks. She’s leaning against Malia, her black hair tied up in a messy bun.

“Sometimes when she gets a little too drunk, she has nightmares about her father. I could tell she didn’t sleep well last night, but she wouldn’t dare admit it, so,” Lydia shrugs, “I’m just trying to help in the best way I can think of.” Both girls frown, their whimpers and coos making Lydia chuckle.

“What happened to her father?” Malia whispers. Lydia smiles, for as long as she’s known Malia, she knows the girl isn’t the whispering type around people she doesn’t care for. If she wants to say something she’ll say it loud and clear and if she wants to know something, she’ll find out. So her whispering shows Lydia that she’s really warming to Cora.

“Uh,” Lydia thinks of a way to say it without getting the two girls super depressed. “You don’t have to tell us, we get it if you don’t want to.” Kira quickly adds in to reassure her.

“No, no, it’s just super depressing,” She chuckles, “Um, he was murdered.” Both girls eyes go wide. “By his brother, Peter’s, psychotic girlfriend who happened to be a hunter.”

“Did he know she was a hunter? What kind of wolf dates a _hunter_??” Malia leans forward, the wolf and coyote in her becoming immediately intrigued by the story.

“Yeah, well, to make things worst she was an Argent,” Malia chokes on her spit, leaning forward to cough in surprise and only calming when Kira dramatically pats her on the back.

“An _Argent_!?” Lydia nods, “Ok, not to sound like an asshole or anything but, come on, how did he _not_ see that coming? Argents are notoriously wicked!”

Lydia shakes her head, “When Peter found out that werewolves were real and that his brother was getting married to one, it all went to his head. He fell deep into werewolf lore and history and had Talia turn him. He trained like crazy, quickly rising in rank, and when a beautiful tall, blond and strong woman like _Kate Argent_ gave him attention there was no turning back. She conned and fooled him, making him think she wasn’t like her family members who hunted and killed anything.” Kira frowns deeper, settling more into the couch and her girlfriend as Lydia continued.

“Neither Talia or Robert liked Kate, but Peter was in love and there was no turning back ... he thought they were some type of supernatural Bonnie & Clyde. He began thinking about mating for life and having kids and he defended her like his life depended on it until she finally showed her true colors. She had spent the night before at their house, eating breakfast with the entire family and playing outside with Laura, Derek, and Cora. She even slept with Peter one last time, to this day it kills him to admit that it was the best sex they ever had, then that night, the crazy bitch came back to their house and lit it on fire. All the wolves got out, their healing working to stop any smoke inhalation and helping them to get out of the house quickly. Robert had made Talia go ahead to get the kids all the way upstairs as he tried finding and stopping the fire but, he was still human, always refusing to make Talia give him the bite. When everyone was safely out and far away enough, Peter ran back in to get his brother but by that time he was already dead.” She finished, looking down at Cora who was still sleeping comfortably with a small smile on her face.

Kira clears her throat, “Gosh, I know that must’ve been tough on all of them, but how did Peter deal with this?” Malia nods, “Yeah I can’t imagine being exactly sane if the love of my life killed my brother.”

“He stuck by the family even more than before and did all he could to replace Robert. He played a sort of husband to Talia and a father to the kids. He put up a front to keep everyone else from falling, but secretly he was pretty much losing his mind. He plotted and planned various ways to track Kate down and kill her and it almost drove him insane because an Argent isn’t exactly someone you find if they don’t want to be found.” Lydia fixes the blanket covering both her and Cora when the girl begins to stir.

“ _Please_ tell me he found her and burned her fingers off!” Malia yells, fave clear with frustration and anger.

Lydia chuckles, “Oh yeah, he definitely found her; she had fled to Mexico and was hiding in some house in a regular neighborhood. To this day not even he knows how exactly he found her, but he did. He strapped her up, got her confess to all her crimes in Beacon Hills that were able to be passed off as something not supernatural-related, and gutted her like a pig. He drove all the way back to Beacon Hills with her dead body in his trunk and dumped her on the steps of the sheriff's station.” Malia stands up to clap, grinning happily before Kira yanks her back down onto the couch.

“Since then, the Argents have taken a new path. Kate’s niece, Allison, is my best friend and apart of the Pack and her father basically is too. They no longer just hunt anything and everything for money. They protect those who need to be protected, supernatural or human, and kill those that need to be gone.”

Kira smiles, “I love that, Lyds, that you guys aren’t holding every Argent responsible for Kate’s crimes.” She nods, thinking of her beautiful Pack back home as she settles more into the couch and continues playing with Cora’s hair.

“What about the kids?” Malia nods towards the sleeping girl. Lydia sighs, “Gosh, it’s almost no recovering from that. Laura struggles to keep and stay in a relationship and Derek battled with the fear of being alone, but I think Cora struggles with it the most. She’s the youngest and had the least time with her father, so as she grew, she began to forget him and that tore her up inside. She felt like love and commitment was useless because she’d end up losing the person to death anyway like her mom, and that was actually the cause of our break up.” Both girls mutter “wow”, nodding their heads in equal amazement and sadness.

“And I thought _I_ was messed up,” Malia mutters, laughing when both Kira and Lydia hit her with pillows. “Sweetie, you killed your mother for power so you’re _just_ as messed up as the rest of us.”

Malia gasps in mock horror, putting her hands up in defense, “Hey! She tried taking my power from me _first_ when all I wanted was my father’s identity!” Kira shakes her head, kissing Malia’s shoulder and changing the subject to something lighter. They sit there for what feels like hours, talking about who knows what, ordering in food and allowing Cora to catch up on sleep.

~

When Cora wakes up, the lights are off, with the exception of a few lit candles, and she can hear music playing from upstairs. The house is a little chilly but the blanket on top of her keeps her warm and the couch has never been more comfortable. She doesn’t want to leave at all, but finally does in curiosity when she realizes that the songs playing are the ones Lydia puts on to get ready. She slumps up the stairs, rubbing her eyes as she enters their bedroom to see Lydia brushing through her hair in nothing but her underwear and a bra. She looks at the girl in her mirror, smiling when she immediately gets up to hug her.

“Sleep well?” She kisses Cora softly, cupping her cheek lovingly.

“The best I have in months,” Cora kisses Lydia again, staring into her eyes with a smirk. “and I know you had something to do with it.”

Lydia gasps, “ _Me?!_ I had nothing to do with that, I promise! My couches are just perfect.” She kisses Cora’s nose before heading back to her vanity. “Go get ready, don’t forget we have that dinner at my friend’s house.”

Cora had forgotten all about that. She groans; she was hoping to spend the rest of the night on the couch or in bed with Lydia, but spending the night acting prestigious will have to do. Lydia hates waiting so she hurries to their closet, laughing when she sees that the girl had already picked out an entire outfit for her. She throws it on, having Lydia do her hair and makeup because she personally doesn’t have the patience then they’re out the door.

One of Lydia’s lab partners, Violet, got engaged to some millionaire and invited Lydia to their celebration party. Cora could tell that the two were in some type of competition; Lydia never doubted or felt the need to defend her intelligence anymore, but something about Violet made her do just that. They raced in the classroom to see who could finish labs first, answer the most questions correctly, get the highest grades. Lydia knew that This invitation was a test, a way to get Lydia to see how successful and better she is since she knew Lydia would never turn down the invite. Lydia just _had_ to go to the party, she had to show Violet that she isn’t jealous or intimidated by her. So, that’s why Cora is currently bored out of her mind, sipping champagne that did nothing for her and yawning every three seconds at a ten million dollar house that only two people and a dog live in. Lydia had to grip her hand every time some fifty-year-old pervert would come up to the two of them asking to dance only to be sent away with a scowl when he found out they were together.

“Lyds, how much longer do we have to stay?” Cora moans, swirling her spoon in a bowl of disgusting caviar - seriously, _caviar_? What is this, a yacht party for retired and divorced CEO’s?

Lydia put on a fake smile as she nodded at a few other classmates. “Violet is making her rounds. When she’s finished talking to us, we can run out of here.” Cora groans, she didn’t bring any wolfsbane to sneak into her alcohol because she knew that if she got even a little tipsy, Lydia would throw a fit at the risk of Cora embarrassing her - she was obviously really regretting that decision now.

“What does this guy even do?” Cora asks, looking around in wonder, still annoyed that this Violet and her fiancé have such a huge house for only the two of them.

“I think he’s some spoiled trust fund baby who bought his way through law school off of his daddy’s real estate mogul money,” Lydia whispers, sipping her red wine like a prissy brat and smiling at a few more people.

“This house is way too ridiculously huge,” Lydia rolls her eyes at her girlfriend, “Oh please, stop acting so modest. The house back home is no different, and don't forget about our house here. It’s only the two of us for a three-story home!”

“Yeah, because it houses a _Pack_! Not two people! Also, the Pack could visit anytime, so we need a big house even for the two of us.” Cora laughs, “and I could say the same for you! You need to stop acting modest seeing as we’re _both_ trust fund babies.” She finishes with a smirk as Lydia gasps, tossing a single caviar egg at the girl and causing them to both fall into a fit of giggles.

They’re deep into a conversation, forgetting that they’re still at a party when someone taps Lydia on the shoulder. Both girls look up, seeing a young girl and an older man, about thirty, standing at their table. Lydia gracefully stands up, prompting Cora to do the same.

“Lydia!” Violet opens her arms, hugging Lydia as Cora shakes hands with the fiancé. When she let’s go, she’s grinning widely, but Cora can tell it’s fake.

“This is my fiancé, Garrett,” He says hello, shaking Lydia’s hand with a smile; a genuine one. “This is Cora, my girlfriend.” Violet hugs Cora too, still fake-smiling brightly. Her hair is long, dark brown and curly, reaching her thin and small waist that’s covered with a blue dress that matched Garrett’s tie. She’s tanned, obviously fake seeing as it’s winter and that the smell of her tanning lotion is strong, but Cora has to admit that she looks pretty despite her being Lydia’s nemesis.

“Oh! It’s so nice to meet you!” She says a little way too loud, overdoing it with the friendliness and beginning to annoy the wolf and her ears. Someone calls Garrett’s name, and he politely excuses himself before running off and leaving them alone with the so-called _“rat”_. “It was so nice of you to invite us. It’s beautiful here.” Lydia says and Cora knows she’s lying because she called the entire setup tacky the minute they walked in.

“Of course! I wanted to share this with as many of my friends as possible. Plus, I wanted the chance to finally meet your girl!” Cora smiles, leaning more into Lydia.

“I hear you just moved here from California! That’s such a huge change.”

“Yeah, it was a big move, but Boston is just as great. Except for the cold and the snow, of course.” Violet bursts into laughter, fake again, because what Cora said wasn’t even funny.

“What school do you go to? I’m pretty sure Lydia never told me anything about you going to MIT too,” Cora could see Lydia’s smile falter for a second before she quickly fixes it.

“Uh, I don’t attend any university,” Cora admits, maintaining eye contact to not give any idea that she’s ashamed. Violet’s confused, cocking her head to the side, “Oh! So you graduated already? You look super young!” Lydia sighs a little, covering it up with a small chuckle and a sip of her wine.

“No, no, haven’t graduated college either.” Violet nods, “Oh I get it. You must’ve gone straight to work after high school, huh? Yeah, one of my close friends went right to work too at her father’s company after high school.” Cora wished her werewolf powers came with x-ray vision because the sight of Lydia’s brain going haywire would be entertaining enough to lighten the mood right now.

“I, uh, I didn’t go to work either.” Cora shrugs. She watches as Zoey’s genuine and “kind” smile changes into a spiteful smirk. “So, you don’t go to school and you don’t have a job?” Cora shrugs again, smiling when Lydia finished her glass with a gulp loud enough for only her to hear.

“Cora’s trust fund is more than enough to support herself and her kids and her kid’s kids!” Lydia lets out. Cora can tell that she said it out panic but she gets a slight feeling of irritation.

“Oh! So you are rich after all! Well, that’s good! At least you aren’t uneducated, unemployed _and poor_. Am I right, Lyds?” Zoey laughs, hitting Lydia’s arm “playfully” as the redhead laughs along.

“What do your parents do?” Violet asks, suddenly super interested in Cora.

“My father was a really successful realtor and developer over in California.” She nods, ignoring the weird feeling in her stomach at the word “was”.

Zoey gasps, “Garrett’s dad is a realtor! Look at us, finding things in common already! Ok, I’ve got to make more rounds. Thank you guys so much for coming!” She hugs them both one more time before running off to a group of identical blondes. Lydia lets out an angry breath, grabbing a flute of champagne from a passing tray and downing it in seconds.

“You need to scream?” Cora whispers, seeing how red the girl’s face had gotten.

“I might just blow this cheap house down if that bitch calls me “Lyds” again.” She whispers back, grabbing her purse and Cora’s hand to leave. They quickly hitch a taxi, riding in silence, and get back home where Lydia immediately storms upstairs. Cora follows her, knowing a rant is coming. She sits on the bed, slowly taking off her heels and listening to Lydia throwing clothes around in the closet.

“Why was she even interrogating you? So _what_ if you aren’t in college or you aren’t working! That’s none of _her_ business!” She yells. Cora stands to slip off her dress, tying her hair up.

“I know, babe. Just forget about it.” She knows Lydia will never just “forget about it” but she says it anyway, voice comforting and soothing.

“I mean if we’re being honest the only reason she’s at MIT is to find a rich husband that daddy would approve of! James is a thirty-four-year-old that came on campus one day with his father to visit a professor. Zoey is twenty-one! She needs to worry about _that_ thirteen year age difference and not what you’re fucking doing!” Cora hears the shower start running and Lydia hopping in. She gives her a minute before joining, helping to release some tension by washing her hair. She kisses her neck, and that’s all because Cora knows better than to initiate sex with an angry banshee. They hop out, getting dressed in silence before climbing into bed.

Lydia sighs, turning only her head to stare at Cora. “What pissed me off the most was how she felt like you only had value as a person when she found out that you were rich.” Cora turns fully on her side to face the girl, smiling and taking the hair out of her eyes. “She’s an asshole. If I wouldn’t get arrested, I’d gut her.” Cora jokes, hoping to lighten the mood. Lydia laughs, “I bet Malia would do it for me. She gets rid of bodies better than the government,” Cora giggles before seeing the serious look on Lydia’s face.

She smacks her shoulder, “Don’t even think about it!” They burst into laughter, scooting closer to the other.

“Does it bother you that I don’t go to school and that I don’t have a job?” Cora whispers. She’s been wanting to get the question off her chest since the first weekend she arrived in Boston. Lydia just blinks at her, and she remains quiet to give her time to think and answer.

“Honestly?” She whispers back.

“Always.”

She sighs, “Yes.”

“Then I’ll start looking for a job tomorrow.” Cora states. Lydia sits up, looking down at the girl in worry. “Cora you don’t ha-“

“Yes I do, Lyds,” She whispers, resting her hand on Lydia’s expose thigh, “I tremendously messed this up before and I lost you. I know what it feels like to lose the most _amazing_ and beautiful woman in the world and I never want to feel that again. If me getting a job is what makes you happy, then I’ll do it. Or I’ll apply to a college. I’ll do it in a heartbeat because all I want is to make you happy.” Lydia coos, rushing to lean down and kiss the smiling wolf. Lydia deepens the kiss, running her hands through Cora’s hair and straddling her lap. “You still pissed at Violet?” Cora pants when Lydia finally leans away to pull her shirt off. She rolls her eyes, “I was over it until you just brought her up again,”

Cora smirks, “Good. You’re wild when you’re angry.” They laugh and twist into the darkness of the night, folding together as one as they ride the waves of pleasure and emotion and love.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you guys enjoyed!! As always, comment any thoughts you have or correct me on any grammar mistakes because as much as I edit a chapter, I'm not perfect! Xx.


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is extremely late and overdue but finishing my senior year and preparing for college really took up most of my time! Hope everyone enjoys!!

Lydia had now been working on a lab for almost four hours that her professor had assigned and told the class to get started on all within three minutes and without any hint of help. They were expected to figure the entire thing out on their own and turn it in in two days without asking any questions and, usually, Lydia would’ve been in and out in an hour, maybe two, but today? Today she was close to losing her mind and dying of starvation. More than half of the entire class had given up and gone for a bite to eat with the promise of finishing tomorrow, but Lydia was too much of a stubborn brat to do that. She knew that she could finally get this over with if she had a full stomach, but she couldn’t leave yet; not with Violet in the corner doing the exact same experiment. The girl looked worn out, her hair a frizzy mess that only made her smeared eyeliner more obvious and it was honestly fueling Lydia to keep working. Though it seemed that after Violet’s engagement party their “feud” had boiled down a little, Lydia was still wary of her. She noticed all the nice things that Violet began doing like complimenting her outfits or getting her an iced coffee or telling her she looked pretty. That bitch thought she could get to Lydia’s head, but she wouldn’t allow it.

< Hey, I’m still in the lab so I won’t make it for dinner. I probably won’t make it to tomorrow either! :)

> :/ that sucks babe … want me to bring you something to eat?

< No .. I’ll just head downstairs and get something. Go to bed.

> K. Love you.

She couldn’t feign wellness for another minute longer and finally decided to just take a breather and fill her stomach. She set her materials aside, collected her purse and made her way out without a glance at the few other miserable people in the room.

“Lydia!” She continues walking, slightly increasing the pep in her step when she hears Violet call her name and before she can make it far enough down the hallway, Violet catches up, annoyingly tapping her on the shoulder. Lydia turns, entirely too exhausted to fake a smile.

“Are you going home?” The curly haired girl asks, glancing down at the purse in Lydia’s hands.

“No, don’t be silly, I’m not a quitter. I’m just going downstairs to get something to eat.” She notices the slight downturn of the girl’s mouth and takes that as her response, turning back around to head to the elevators, sighing in relief when she hears the girl’s receding footsteps. Yet, as she’s waiting for the doors to open, her conscience gets the better of her and she huffs and puffs before making her way back to the lab room. Violet is back in her own work corner, slumped over her table space with her head in her hands with her irritating sniffles ringing throughout the room. Lydia approaches the table, eyeing how Violet almost has nothing done despite the assignment having been assigned four hours ago. She tapped on the granite top with her manicured nail, clearing her throat to get the sad girl’s attention. Her head pops up and she softly gasps when she sees who it is, quickly turning her head to wipe her at her face and frantically run her hands through her messy hair.

“Back already?” She manages a teary giggle and Lydia can’t help but feel a twinge of sympathy at how distraught she is.

“Do you want to come to get a bite with me? I’m sure you’re as hungry as I am.” Lydia smiles.

She whips around, staring at Lydia with a watery smile. “Oh G _od_ , I would love that!”

Their trip from the lab’s location on the third floor to the cafe on the first floor was completely silent. Lydia mindlessly scrolled through her phone, trying to do _anything_ to calm all the blaring thoughts in her mind screaming at her for actually inviting Violet to eat with her. It had been an extremely aggravating day and she just voluntarily went and invited a very stress-inducing person to her dinner that was supposed to be relaxing. They went their separate ways once they finally got to the cafe to get their meals and Lydia releases a calming deep breath when Violet was far away enough. She gets a simple sub with yogurt and an iced coffee for caffeine to keep her awake and alert and heads to the table that Violet picked out. Lydia immediately begins devouring her food without even a nod at the girl across her and it isn’t until about five minutes later that she notices the girl was crying. She stops mid-chew, glancing around to see if anyone else was noticing the show that Violet was putting on. Thankfully the only other people in the cafe are two graphic design majors too busy in their work to pay attention and the group of cashiers who are all huddled together and talking about who knows what.

“Violet, are you alright?” She asks with a casualness to her tone while sipping her coffee.

Violet violently shakes her head as she continues to cry. “No! I just .. I feel so stupid!” She yells obnoxiously. Lydia glances around and everyone is still too buried in their own business to look up.

“Is this about the lab? Violet, come on, everyone’s struggling on that. Even _I_ am, and I’m the smartest in the class.” She can’t help but smile at the reminder.

“No, no, you don’t get it,” She sniffs, stealing almost all of Lydia’s napkins to wipe at her eyes. “I … I’m not good at science.” She whispers, ducking her head in shame and sniffling some more.

“If you aren’t good at science, then why are you in science classes for a science major? Don’t be stupid.” Lydia rolls her eyes, eating a scoop of her yogurt. It seriously blows her mind how overdramatic people can get.

“Look, Lydia, can I tell you a secret?” She whispers again and Lydia has to tap her foot in annoyance because she hates unnecessary whispering. Her slight annoyance fades though when she realizes what Violet just asked and she leans forward in her seat, suddenly interested in having a secret to hold over the girl’s head, not caring how cruel that sounds.

“Go for it.”

“I suck at anything science related and I’m only in here because I wanted to prove a point.” She confesses, immediately stuffing a chunk of her brownie into her mouth as if that would erase what she just admitted to.  
Lydia chuckles, “Excuse me?”

“My dad knows the Dean, they used to fool around in the nineties or something I don’t know,” she waves her arms around, “so he donated a ton of money and I got in. I _hated_ science in high school, but I chose to major in it to prove a point to my dad because he once made this stupid comment about how _“not doing a science or law or medical or business major was a waste of time and money”_ and it weighed on me for so long! I never wanted to seem like a failure to him, so, now, here I am, waking up every day to get to school and take classes that I absolutely hate while becoming more and more _miserable_.”

Violet breathes out a heavy sigh of relief once she’s finished and pops the other half of her baked good into her mouth. She laughs, leaning her head back and running her hands through her hair for a bit, staring up at the ceiling and spacing out as Lydia took in everything she said. When Violet finally comes back down to the earth, Lydia is able to fully take in the girl’s appearance. She had never seen her so disheveled, and something tiny in her actually felt bad, but the majority of her emotions were happy ones right now. Violet had just revealed something so major to Lydia, despite them seeing the other as competitors not too long ago. Lydia laughed along with Violet, taking a moment to sip her coffee as she intensely judged the girl who always presented herself as a beautiful, one-of-a-kind genius.

She smirks, “Oh, Violet.”

~

“She _what_??” Cora looks up from her laptop, completely taken aback at what she’s hearing. It was almost twelve in the morning and Lydia had finally gotten home after finishing her lab and Cora had stayed up to wait for her because she knew the girl would have a lot to say when she got home.

Lydia giggles, “Cora, I’m telling you, she just ... bared her _soul_ to me! No joke, after that she told me even more!” Cora closes her laptop, putting it on her bedside table. She watches as the girl dries her body after getting out of the shower, toweling through her hair and slipping it into a sloppy ponytail to go to sleep in. She comes into the room, heading to their shared dresser to look for something to wear.

“Last year, when she was a freshman, she passed a class by giving a professor a blow job and for all her other ones she flirted with horny boys to get them to do her work for her. Now, she has Garrett so she can’t do any of that anymore and she’s practically failing everything! She wants to drop out and become an _actress_ but she’s stuck on proving this point, so it’s preventing her from doing so.”

Both girls erupted into a fit of laughter. Cora knew it was wrong for laughing at this poor girl’s problems, but Lydia’s storytelling just made everything hilarious. She watched her cross the room back and forth for things, going into the bathroom and the closet multiple times before she could finally turn off all the lights and get into bed.

“So, what did you tell her?” Cora asks, turning her body so she could face her girlfriend. Lydia makes a face, picking up her phone and going into her email. Cora sneaks a peak and sees that it’s empty and watches as Lydia goes into their Pack group chat, scrolling to see all the messages she missed throughout the day. Cora knows that she’s avoiding the question and snatches the phone out of her hands, “Lydia Martin. _What_ did you tell her?”

The girl sighs, reaching for her phone as Cora pulls it further and further out of her reach. “Lydia!”

“Ok fine! I just told her to drop out!” Cora barks out a laugh, hitting the girl on her shoulder, trying her hardest to not laugh and encourage her devious behavior.

“Lydia!! Why not just tell her to, you know, switch _majors_?” Cora screams, laughing harder when Lydia begins laughing too.

“It’s a technology and science school! Anything she switched to, she’d still struggle with! So .. might as well drop out. For her happiness of course.” She smiles, making herself look innocent and Cora almost falls for it. “So mischievous,” She mumbles before giving her back her phone.

While Lydia was stuck in her lab, Cora had spent the night doing a mixture of scrolling through her phone, bothering the rest of the pack, searching for jobs, looking at majors she’d be interested in and watching reality TV. The job search process was extremely difficult because she absolutely refused to work at some fast-food joint or a clothing store out of pride and more for fear of Lydia’s judgment. Everything else wanted an employee with a college degree which then directed her to any of the local college’s websites and presented a new struggle: school. School had never been something Cora liked, she did her work when needed and spent the rest of the time doing whatever she wanted. She hated the long hours and the repetition and all the bullshit “core classes” that didn’t exactly pertain to her interests, but she needed a job or a school or a class and she needed it quickly because the thought of disappointing Lydia honestly kept her up at night.

“I’m starving,” Cora hums, only now realizing that she was hungry. She glances up from her own phone to see Lydia shining her flashlight on her bare midriff.

“Lyds is this your way of telling me you want to have sex? If so, food can wait.” She smirks, already inching closer.

“No, you horny animal. I’m just looking ... I feel like I need a tan.” She mumbles, putting the light on her arms now too.

“Well, you can forget about that seeing as it’s still so frozen everywhere,” Cora says, rolling her eyes at the fact that spring refused to make its way to Massachusetts.

Lydia frowns and shows Cora a picture of Allison, Erica, and Laura at the beach. “Look how tan they all are … it’s so not fair. Erica’s busy with a newborn and she’s still so tan and gorgeous.”

“Do you wanna cook or go out?” Cora asks, trying to avoid Lydia’s incoming vent about needing a tan because _“My hair looks even better when I’m tan”_ and begins searching up any nearby 24-hour diners.

“Let’s just whip up some toast or eggs or something. I want to go to sleep immediately after eating.” She says, words being overpowered by a small, cute yawn. They walk downstairs together and Cora makes Lydia sit down as she cooks them a late dinner/early breakfast. She sets a cuppa tea down first for the girl to induce sleep, then the egg bagels that she quickly whipped up for them both. Lydia smiles as if it’s the meal she’s been looking forward to for days and pushes her body up to give Cora a long and loving kiss. Cora eats slowly, taking her time to fondly watch how sleepy and drowsy her girlfriend is, her usual firm and bossy guard down in the early hours of the morning.

“Do we have anymore watermelon?” She mumbles, letting out a small burp that Cora can’t help but find cute. She gets up to head to the fridge, scanning everything before finding the last bit of the watermelon squares and bringing it back to the table. When they’re finished eating, Cora tells Lydia to go upstairs and rest as she cleans up the kitchen. It’s not a lot and she almost leaves it alone 'til the morning, but she could practically hear her mother in the back of her head yelling _“Clean it up!”_. She’s done in minutes and races back up the stairs, walking straight into their bathroom where she meets Lydia as they both brush their teeth together.

They crawl back into bed, both snuggling underneath the covers and Cora watches the girl play on her phone, turning on her side and observing how nicely the light from the device illuminates her face. Cora scoots forward, kissing her cheek then moving closer to kiss the side of her mouth. Lydia get’s distracted by the attention, smiling when Cora begins softly tickling the back of her neck. She uses the opportunity to take the phone from her hand, giggling into the kiss when Lydia groans. She glances down at the screen to see what Lydia was up to, surprised to see her messages open again.

“Lyds, wait, are you texting _Violet_?” She looks at the girl who just shrugs, so Cora puts the phone on her side of the bed.

“I was just explaining the experiment to her. She’s quitting but was still curious.” She says, snuggling more into her overly expensive pillows. “And we were making plans.” She whispers afterward.

“Plans?” Cora’s shocked because until now, she’d think Lydia would rather jump out of a building than willingly make plans with Violet.

“Yeah, I’m going for drinks with her and Garrett on Wednesday night.” Cora laughs, thinking that Lydia must be playing a joke on her because that’s in two days, then sobers up once she sees the girl is serious.

“Oh, well, that’s _really_ interesting.” Is all Cora can manage to say. Lydia smirks, “I’m just going because her secrets intrigue me. Don’t be jealous.”

She comes closer to Cora, laying her head on her chest and smiling as she laughs, the vibrations of her rumbling chest feeling like they’re moving throughout Lydia.

“Please, I’m not a child and I’m not jealous. I just thought you hated her.”

“I do.” She leans up to kiss Cora’s jaw and goes back down to lay on her chest.

“Hm. Get some rest.” Cora whispers. This time she’s the one running her hand through Lydia’s hair to get her to sleep. It’s almost always the other way around and she’s glad that Lydia’s allowing her to do this because sometimes the girl really does need to be taken care of too.

~

Cora wakes up to the sound of Mob Wives playing low on the TV. She had taken a quick two-hour nap at five something after being home all alone again today; Lydia had left for class around eleven and was supposed to be back home around five but there was no sign of her. She yawns and stretches before picking up her laptop again to continue working. So far, Cora’s schedule of waking up after Lydia left and getting straight to work has been ... interesting. It’s extremely tiring and one might say she isn’t doing much, but, come on? For hours on end, she’s searching the internet high and dry for a job she could get with a high school diploma but one that she would actually enjoy. There are a lot of server positions that always seem pretty easy and enjoyable, but every time she calls in for an interview, they ask her if she’s “certified”.

When she gets bummed by job searching she switches over to finding college majors which is just as difficult. She was never great at English, the idea of all the different interpretations and meanings of a text drove her insane during high school, so that was out of the question. Though she was good at math, she absolutely dreaded it. The medical and science field just was not for her at all, so that was also out of the question - plus it took way too much schooling. Law was the same thing - also how would she be able to stop herself from ripping out some gross criminal or attorney’s throat? Derek recommended that she go to school for history with a focus on the supernatural: _“that’s normal now, Co, with all of those stupid vampires and dystopian novels nowadays”_ , but history was the equivalent of seven wolfsbane whiskeys: it put her straight to sleep. Laura, Talia, Peter and most of the rest of the Pack agreed that she should go into business because, to quote her mother: “if anyone can follow in your father’s business footsteps, it’s you.” But that was … a touchy subject.

Lydia wouldn’t recommend, approve, or disapprove of anything. She vowed to remain indifferent, pretending that she’d be pleased with whatever Cora chose to do with her life, but everyone knew that that was far from the truth. She’d never speak up though, in fear of looking like the bitchy, uptight version of herself that Cora sometimes, admittedly, still loves. It blew her mind how above everyone else, Lydia’s opinion mattered the most. If her mom or her siblings disapproved, she’d kindly tell them to fuck off, but if Lydia disapproved it’d probably break her heart and all her self-esteem. It was so mentally difficult being the burden in a relationship and though she had the money and economic class that Lydia desired, she didn’t have the brains and the drive that the girl also found essential in a partner and it constantly drove Cora crazy. She wanted to throw her laptop into traffic and curl up on the couch in a blanket, ignoring and blocking out the world and its expectations, but how could she do that when Lydia and her judgments always burrowed their way into her mind like an insistent tick?

As she thought about it, the only thing that she was truly good at was fighting. She was one of the strongest fighters in the Pack, always running in the front with the bigger guys to take down a threat no matter its size or strength. As a child, she always enjoyed being outside, climbing trees, hunting dead animals or roughhousing with her dad or uncle Peter. Sitting in one place for too long always made her unsettled, maybe it was the wolf in her - or a case of ADHD that couldn’t ever be treated because the medication dose needed for her immune system would alarm every doctor in the country - but Cora seriously hated school. Since the end of her freshman year, she made it clear to Talia that she wouldn’t be attending college and she had always stuck by that. She pledged to graduate high school, get a simple job in Beacon Hills and spend the rest of her time happily partaking in any Pack duties. Fast forward almost five years and now she’s three-thousand miles from home, and trying to rack her brain for a logical hardworking job and college major. It’s funny how times change, but it’s hilarious how love changes people. She was gradually becoming more and more comfortable with the changes in her life but only because it was all for Lydia. She was doing all of this for Lydia, for Lydia’s happiness and standards, and she’d do absolutely anything for her.

Cora rubbed her eyes in frustration and the burning sensation told her that they were red and irritated from staring at a bright screen right after a nap. It was almost eight, the time of the night when she’d be doing something with Lydia, but the banshee wasn’t here to keep her company so she figured she’d just keep looking for open positions. That lasted all of fifteen minutes before she got up, heading to the kitchen for a cup of peppermint tea that Lydia claims works to _“decrease stress”_ , but all it does is make Cora feel like she’s eaten a tub of expensive toothpaste. Ten minutes after her cuppa, she heads back into the kitchen for some chips, then fifteen minutes later for one of Lydia’s homemade strawberry cupcakes. When she gets up for the fourth time, she stops herself before fully entering the kitchen and instead spins around to head for the door, slipping on her shoes and grabbing her keys and wallet on the way out.

“I need a fucking drink.”

~

“Could you please call Lydia and let her know I’m here?” Cora mumbles out, turning her head from left to right where it was buried in her arms. Malia hums, pulling out her phone to send a short text to Lydia, letting her know that her girlfriend - who’s an emotional drunk - was a couple drinks away from passing out and snoring on her bar top. She puts her phone away, jogging to the back to get a basket of fries for the distressed wolf on her counter.

“Hey, eat those. I don’t have the time today to be carrying you out the door. Wolves are fucking heavy.” She forces about three fries into Cora’s mouth, rolling her eyes when the girl begins sloppily eating them on her own. She leaves her alone for a few, checking up on more guests, kicking out a pesky coyote for getting too touchy with a fox, handing out more shots of who-knows-what, and yelling to the kitchen to cook up more burgers that everyone would throw up in two hours from drinking too much. It was only nine, and the night was already busy which made Malia dread all the other drunk asses she’ll be dealing with later. She made her way back to Cora, taking her phone out to show her Lydia’s response. When the drunken wolf snorts Malia sneaks a look at the message, her eyebrows shooting up in surprise.

“She’s out with Violet?? I thought she wanted to put like a thousand forbidden spells on her?” It may not be Malia's business, but, come on, she’s basically babysitting the girl’s girlfriend so she has the right to be nosey.

“Me too,” Cora stuffs four big fries into her mouth at once, chasing it with a huge gulp of her beer. Malia mentally gags at the state that her stomach will be in in a few hours before yelling for the cooks to fry up another basket of curly fries for the wolf - she insisted that they be curly, something about missing the other members of her Pack.

“Violet, like, had some weird heart-to-heart with Lydia the other day and now Lydia wants to constantly be around her. She claims it’s her way of getting into Violet’s head and messing with her or something. I don’t know. Who knows.” Cora slurs, burping as she finishes gulping down another swig.

Malia frowns, “Is that why you’re so … bummed?” She eyes the wolf, her eyes are red, even more than from when she first came in, her hair is all over the place, and she’s downing beer after beer on a Thursday night.

“What?” She sits up a bit straighter in confusion, her eyes signaling when she realizes exactly what Malia is insinuating. “Oh! Oh gosh, no, I’m not _jealous_ of Violet! Yeah, she’s pretty, but she isn’t Lydia’s type … not s’rong enough.” Malia trashes the girl’s empty platter of fries, wiping her part of the bar where she spilled crumbs and beer all over like an irritating toddler.

“Then what is it? Homesick?” She guesses, thinking back to the fries. The girl had been here for a bit too long to be homesick now, but that was her only other best guess. She was in love with Lydia and from California, so Malia's best guess what that she could only be either jealous or homesick.

“I can’t find a fucking job!” She yells, gathering the attention of a few others. It takes Malia off guard and she struggles to stifle a laugh, ducking her head and pretending to make a drink for someone.

“Then to make things worse, I thought, hey, if I’m gonna go to school full-time then not having a job would be alright, right? Because I’d be so fucking busy!” She looks around the bar nodding as if she’s talking to multiple people, “Nope! I can’t find a major either because I hate school and have no desire to attend college! Now I’m pathetic and it’s going to draw Lydia away and she’s going to find someone else and turn me into a fucking frog or something with her witchy powers!” Malia watches the girl’s breakdown with a smirk, accidentally letting go of a small laugh as actual _tears_ begin forming in Cora’s eyes.

 _“_ Oh my God, you’re actually _super_ bothered by this, huh?” She muses, handing the emotional mess of a wolf some napkins to wipe her eyes.

“Yes, so stop laughing at me! Lydia’s opinion is the single most important thing in the world to me.” She mumbles, reaching for her now empty bottle.

Malia pauses, “Ok, um, _woah_ there. Look, I love Kira, and, yeah, her opinion is super important to me but sometimes our _own_ opinions about our lives have to go above our partner's.”

Cora shrugs lazily, smiling only when Malia gives her another bottle of beer.  
“Yeah, well,” She gulps, “we’re different people. I need to make sure Lydia is always satisfied.” Malia nods warily, spinning around to grab more orders of burgers and all the other fried foods that she needed to hand out. She delivers more drinks and welcomes in more people before making her way back to Cora, but is stopped when two bells are ringing in her ear, one for a pickup of food and one alerting her of more guests entering through the door. They’re regulars, heading straight to their friends without ordering since she already knows what they want. Malia’s fast, making up their drinks and taking it to them then sending in their order of mozzarella sticks and fried pickles all in record time. She finally makes it back to Cora who she brings an extra burger to sober her up, cutting her off from drinks for the rest of the night.

“I can’t send you home to Lydia all drunk and emotional … she might actually put you outside.” Cora laughs like it’s the funniest thing she ever heard in her life and Malia takes the time to scan the bar until the girl calms down.

“About your job dilemma …” She looks around the bar once more. The noise is picking up, both from the people and the music and the basketball game playing. More people enter, a druid knocks over her drink, and a pesky fucking wolf scratches her wall trying to impress his date.

She sighs, “You ever think of working here?” She asks casually, scanning Cora’s face for an immediate reaction.

“At Coyote? Uh … no, I haven’t,” She bites into her burger, moaning obnoxiously. Malia rolls her eyes, “Well, would you consider it?” Cora put her food down, spinning around in her stool to look around the area, her eyebrows raised in thought.

“Yeah, I think I could work here. Except I don’t have any experience working at a bar.” She admits.

Malia shrugs, “That’s fine. Between myself alone, I bartend and serve all day, almost every day. So, I can have you serving, nothing too formal so only basic training is needed while I bartend and teach you how to before and after hours. How’s that sound?” Malia folds her arms across her chest, leaning back onto the wall to make herself seem more serious. Cora nods continuously as she thinks over all that Malia just said.

“$15.25 an hour?” Malia adds and Cora’s eyes go wide as she chews on the last bite of her burger. “All of that? Just to serve?? Babe, I don’t need that! I have a _very_ comfortable family trust in my bank account.” Cora wanted a job, but the pay was never exactly important to her because she didn’t exactly need a paycheck.

The were-coyote shrugs, “Aside from the two cooks, you’re the only other hire. Plus, you’re a friend and we make a lot of money here. The area isn’t “high class” or “safe” so rent is cheap and I’ll be paying off the loan I got for this place by the end of this year. Trust me, I can afford it and, yes, I’m bragging.”

“$11.25. I insist.” Malia thinks it over, stares at the girl to see if she’s serious then sighs, “Fine.”

Cora grins, “If I could hug you right now I would, but my hands are greasy and if I get up I might seriously throw up.”

Malia throws her bar mop over her shoulder, putting distance between them. “Please, stay seated then because if you throw up then your job will start now and your first duty will be to clean up your own vomit.” They both laugh and Malia taps the girl’s head in exchange for a hug.

~

Lydia decides to be funny and leave a bucket by Cora’s side of the bed. She actually wants to throw water on her for even thinking it’d be okay to come into their bed while reeking of a bar, but she decides to not let anything get in the way of her good mood. She’s all dressed up, hair freshly washed and done, a new outfit on and she’s on her way to one of her favorite spots. She leaves a small note on the bathroom mirror for Cora to see when she wakes up - Gone to breakfast with Violet. Love you! XX. - and heads out the door. The café isn’t too far from her house, so she strolls down by foot, greatly taking in the first slight incoming signs of Spring.

When she finally got to her destination, it’s extremely packed as usual with people waiting in line for a table. Lydia walked straight to the front, smiling at the young host, “Reservation for Martin-Logan party.” She stated loudly; she could feel everyone in line staring daggers into her back, and it only made her want to show off more. It’s not her fault that they thought they could just pop up to one of the hottest spots in the city!

“Ah, yes, we were able to squeeze you in this morning. Anything for you, Miss Martin.” Lydia turned to look at fuming customers, rudely flipping her hair before following the host to their table on the upstairs floor that overlooked the busy city.

“A man apart of your group has already been seated and requested for your orders to be taken when you arrived.” Lydia was confused because since they began spending time together, Violet and Garrett had never been on time, but she ignored it. When she gets to the table, Garret is the only one there, facing away from her and she quickly walks up, already beginning to loosen her scarf.

“Garrett!” She leans down, kissing his cheek, “Where’s Violet?” Her head is down as she takes off her coat, gently placing it on the back of her chair before spinning around. Lydia’s entire body goes still along with what feels like the entire city when she realizes who’s actually sitting at her table and whose cheek she just kissed.

“Jackson?!” She accidentally screams out, gathering the attention of the guests surrounding them. He smiles, waving off customers who look a little too concerned for Lydia’s frightened state. A waiter rushes over, “Is everything alright, Miss Martin?” Lydia’s hand strokes her chest as she slowly sinks down into the seat directly across from Jackson without ever taking her eyes off of him. She takes a small sip of her sparkling water and clears her throat, “Yes, I’m fine, just got a little surprised. Sorry about that.” She cracks a fake smile accompanied with a similarly fake chuckle, signaling Jackson to follow with a kind smile too. The waiter nods, heading back to whatever he was doing before Lydia’s outburst. Lydia busies herself with taking more sips of her drink, avoiding the boy’s intense stare.

“You look so beautiful.” He breathes. Lydia’s heart is racing and all she can do is continue drinking her water because words or whatever else just isn’t making any sense to her right now.

“Are you going to say anything?” He asks, trailing his eyes over her for another second before gazing down at his menu.

“Why do _I_ have to say anything when you’re the one who needs to be explaining what exactly you’re doing in Massachusetts.” Lydia’s voice begins to rise above a steady tone, but she quickly collects herself, remembering to conduct herself civilly.

“I’m accompanying my dad to a meeting with some investors and I happen to know Violet from when I would visit Boston with my father, so I was very happy to spend time with her and her fiancée. When I heard that she and Garrett were going out for breakfast with a friend from Violet’s former school, MIT, I couldn’t help but ask who this friend was. Imagine my surprise when I heard that it was Beacon Hill’s and my own, Lydia Martin. I talked to Vi and Garrett, told them I wanted to surprise you, and here we are now.” He says casually like it was no big deal before signaling the waitress over with the wave of two fingers.

He orders an eggs benedict, a side order of sliced pineapples and a mimosa - Lydia says the entire order in her head, still having his favorite breakfast meal memorized. She gets strawberry and banana French toast with granola crunch and some more sparkling water, avoiding Jackson’s distracting smirk the entire time. Lydia sighs when the waitress leaves and she’s forced to face him again.

“I can’t believe you’re here.”

“I know.” He smiles.

“I’m so fucking _pissed_ at you.” She grits out.

“I know that too.” He smiles wider.

“You smug asshole.” She whispers.

“You impatient bitch.” He whispers back, the smirk still plastered across his face. Lydia keeps serious for all of two minutes before dissolving into a fit of giggles, laughing harder when he joins in. Before she has a chance to stop him, he slyly reaches his hand across the table to her hand in his.

“ _God_ , I’ve missed you.” He admits, voice softer than Lydia thinks she’s ever heard it.

“Yeah, well, you could’ve been here. Here with me, but you missed your chance.” She slips her hand out of his, resting it in her lap as her heartbeat begins picking up again.

“Now you’re living with Cora.” He nods, trying to hide his obvious jealousy. Lydia smiles, remembering her girl, her Cora back home in their bed all drunk and un-showered - shit, not the right memories! She hurries to think of anything better, of anything to distract her from the man and the life she once had planned with him.

“I am.” Lydia attempts to keep her expression stone cold, wanting him to see that she was one hundred percent certain in her decision to get back together with Cora. It was something that she had thought about for a while, something that she was sure she wanted to do. She wanted to be together and she wanted to live together. She was sure … right? Lydia absolutely hated the effect that Jackson continued to have on her; he brought back so many thoughts, both good and bad that somehow always ended up bringing a smile to her face.

“I was a bit … shocked when I found out about that through the _Pack_ ,” He mumbles, taking a sip of his coffee.

From her short glances, Jackson hadn’t changed much. He still didn’t have any facial hair and Lydia knew that would never change because he always hated the feel of scruff. He was wearing a white button-down with navy dress pants, perfectly fitting the part of some posh English businessman. His hair was a bit darker, cut slightly shorter and not as spiked as it was in high school which made him look way more mature and it was still swept to the left as always. No matter how much he smiled or laughed he’d always look like an asshole, but there was still something about him that drove Lydia crazy.

“Especially since about two or three months before that, you were professing your love for me.” He finishes, cockily lifting a single eyebrow.  
Lydia just chuckled, looking away and over the balcony. “Let’s not bring that up.” She said, smiling at a passing waitress and whispering soothing words under her breath to stop herself from lifting the entire building out of anger and humiliation.

“Here is everything!” Their waitress arrived at the perfect time, momentarily cutting Jackson off from saying whatever else he wanted. He smirked at her from across the table, playfully winking at the waitress which caused her cheeks to instantly go pink. Lydia scoffed, taking a small bite of her meal before she accidentally said something she wouldn’t mean.

They ate in silence and Jackson stared at her the entire time. He just continued smiling, assessing everything about the girl from how her hair was a bit shorter, the minimal darker red tint that appeared during winters, the bracelet dangling on her wrist that Cora randomly gifted her three weeks ago, the curving dip of her shirt that teased a bit of the freckles on her chest. He watched her closely and cooly, taking in everything he could for the time being. Lydia wanted to do the same, wanted to try and point out all the other differences that he’s made in the past months, but she didn’t want to give him that satisfaction, to let him know that she was just as intrigued and interested as he was. She tried eating as slow as possible so that they could have a constant distraction, but there’s only so much self-control a person can have with gourmet French toast. When she was finished she checked her phone, sent a few texts, and scrolled through social media to try busying herself with anything but the man seated less than a foot away from her.

“Why don’t we go out for a stroll and catch up? Where’s the best park around here?” Lydia glanced at him, putting her phone down and quickly scanning his side profile when he turned to signal the waitress for the check.

“I don’t think that’s a good idea.” She answered, reaching into her purse to get cash out for her side of the bill.

“Lyds come on. We’re Pack and I haven’t seen you in so long.” He slickly slid her cash away, quickly handing his card to the young server.

“Yeah, well I have a history with you that I don’t exactly have with the others.” She was already beginning to put back on her coat, letting him know that she was serious about leaving and ending this sudden and unplanned meet-up.

“And a girlfriend. Don’t forget that part.” He smirked again, that fucking passive aggressive smirk that Lydia always hated.

“Shut up. It was nice seeing you, Jackson.” She fixed her scarf, walking past him but not getting too far before he grabbed her wrist, stopping her from going any further.  
She pursed her lips and sighed defeatedly, “Let me go.”

“I’m not using any more force or strength than a normal guy my age. If you really wanted to, you’d go. You’re stronger than me, Miss banshee-witch.” He loosened his grip to further prove his point and Lydia suddenly felt so weak, even weaker than before she discovered her abilities.

“Jackson,” she whined.

“I’m here for a week. I won’t force you into anything. I won’t call, text, email, nothing. But you know how to get in contact with me if you choose. I’ll be here.” Lydia looked into his eyes, scanning them for any detection of false-sincerity. He was different, something about him was drastically different but it wasn’t anything physical that Lydia could immediately point out. He stared back, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles and suddenly she was seventeen again, falling in love against her will with a no-good boy all over again. They were back in Beacon Hills, making out in the territory owned by her ex-girlfriend, sneaking down into her parents' wine cellar at three in the morning and telling one another their hidden secrets. They were on her bed, rolling around and giggling with no care in the world but for the other, skinny dipping in his pool, splashing huge amounts of water on the other as their laughter ran along with the wind.

She snatched her hand away, tears brimming in her eyes. Lydia cleared her throat before finally walking away, turning around once to see him looking right at her. She walked back home with a frown, her emotions gone haywire. Jackson Whittemore had popped up in Boston, in the place she once wanted to grow with him; the place that he refused to go to, that he left her alone in after years of planning. Now here he was, smiling at her, rubbing her hands and bringing back memories that she thought had been long disposed of.

She entered the house, hearing Cora giggling which momentarily washed the thoughts of what just happened out of her mind. The TV was loud and she followed the sound down the long corridor and into the living room. Lydia smiled, draping herself over the back of the couch, kissing the side and back of her girlfriend’s neck. She needed to smell her, to be surrounded by her smell and her touch to rid her mind of his lost aura.

“Hey babe, how was breakfast?” Cora asked, lowing the volume down and turning slightly to face her. Lydia’s heart jumped, she wanted to spill about everything that happened, but how could she? Not after everything the three of them had already dealt with before.

“It was fine. Violet was as crazy as usual.” Lydia lied and Cora let out a little laugh, pausing for a bit as she trailed her eyes over the redhead’s face. She hummed, kissing her forehead before turning around to continue whatever she was watching. Lydia went to sit on the other end of the couch, eyes glued to the tv as she tried to find a distraction from the thoughts roaming around in her mind.

How could Jackson just arrive like that? Just pop up and expect her to accept him with open arms and kisses. He made it seem as if everything that happened in Lydia’s life since they last spoke had no meaning, that her life stopped when they broke up and was only to resume when they got back together. He was being a passive aggressive asshole and she wanted to punch him in the face, but something not too deep inside her also wanted to hug him, embrace and hold him, tell him how much she missed him.

“… and I’m super excited because I’ve never done anything like this! Lyds? Hey, are you listening?” Lydia came to at the sound of Cora’s voice. She blinked at her, smiling apologetically when she realized that she had no idea what the girl was just talking about.

“I’m sorry, babe. I’m just .. tired.” She lied again, easily steadying her heartbeat and shifting closer to the wolf. She folded herself under Cora’s arm, snuggling cutely under the blanket they were now sharing. Lydia had to tell Cora what happened. She really had to now because what happened if Cora found out later? Then it’d look like Lydia had something to hide and that would cause so many unneeded issues especially since Jackson meant nothing. Nothing.

Lydia groaned, “I have to tell-”

“I was saying how Malia gave me a job at Coyote!” That was sure to catch Lydia’s attention this time around. Her eyes widened and she turned herself to stare at Cora with a wide grin on her face.

“No way!” She yelled and Cora nodded excitedly, causing Lydia to lean forward and plant a wet, loving kiss on Cora’s lips that tasted like her favorite brand of peppermint tea.

“I swear I had nothing to do with it.” Lydia clarified, leaning away to stare into Cora’s eyes, reassuring her that Malia offered her the job on her own will.

“I know, baby.” Cora giggled, moving Lydia’s hair out of her eyes, bopping her nose with a gentle kiss. “Sorry for cutting you off. What were you going to say?”

Lydia tried her hardest to maintain the generous smile that she had on her face. She managed a simple roll of her eyes, using the time to think of a simple lie.

“Nothing,” she snorted, “just something silly that Violet said.” Cora nodded, continuing to stare deep into Lydia's eyes.

“Nothing important, then?”

Lydia smiled, “Nope. Nothing important at all.” They were quiet for a bit before she tackled Cora down into the couch, attacking her with more kisses and tickles. Sooner than later, their clothes were off and Lydia made her way underneath Cora. She let Cora have the power for the night, she let her be in control, something that she hardly ever did, but it was as if her body took control without her knowing. She didn’t mind it though, maybe because she was too busy thinking of being underneath a certain someone else.


	4. Chapter Four

“Is Lydia coming in tonight?” 

Cora glances back at the sound of Malia’s voice. She watches the were-coyote get comfortable leaning against the wall as she pretends to not be observing everything Cora does. It had been almost a month since she took the job at Coyote and had quickly upped her bartending skills thanks to Malia’s daily teaching. When she wasn’t cleaning or bringing out burgers for hungry and obnoxious supernaturals, she was learning from Malia, watching her make and serve any drink that her customers desired.

“Uhh,” She paused to messily pour a platter of tequila shots for a group of college girls, “nah I don’t think so. She’s out with Violet and Garrett.” 

Kira’s eyes flitted up from her laptop screen at Cora’s response. She had come in about two hours ago to work on a paper claiming that the background noise of the bar helped her to concentrate. She made a momentary face at Malia, one that a human wouldn’t have caught, while Cora’s head was down. She pretended to not know that the two were currently having a silent conversation that solely consisted of facial expressions. 

“Ok … Cora don’t you think it’s a little … _odd_ how much time they suddenly spend together?” Kira’s the first to speak up. Cora looks back at Malia again; she’s rubbing her forehead in frustration as if she didn’t want Kira to say anything. Cora was expecting this because she knew that the two had a lot to say on the topic of Lydia and Violet’s sudden closeness.

“What exactly do you mean?” She plays coy, wiping down the bar top with faux confusion. Kira makes a face, obviously stumped on what to say before she closes her laptop lid.

“Look … I’m not a jealous girlfriend, like not at all. Ask Malia, we’ve never even had an argument over another girl or anything like that and we’ve been together for almost two years now. _But_ ,” She pauses, taking a deep breath and scooting closer to Cora, “if Malia were to suddenly become _so_ close with a girl that she wanted to cast ancient spells on days before their sudden friendship … I’d probably literally turn the color green and whip out my sword. _Especially_ if the girl were as beautiful as Violet.”

Cora fully turns to look at Malia, feeling cool when she successfully swings the bar mop over her shoulder, “You agree with her?” Malia shrugs her shoulders, nodding her head yes.

Cora starts to laugh at the seriousness of their conversation, “Guys, come on, Lydia isn’t cheating on me! She just realized how much she and Violet are alike and that it made no sense hating her anymore now that she doesn’t see her as competition. Trust me, I know Lydia unlike anyone else.” She chuckles, popping some peanuts into her mouth and walking over to the other side of the bar to give a shy shapeshifter a refill. She heads back to the two girls, laughing again at their embarrassed emotions and expressions.

Kira groans, “Gosh, you’re right. Ugh, oh my gosh, I feel like a such a horrible friend for even _thinking_ that she’d do something like that to you.” She takes a rather large gulp of her beer and begins massaging her scalp, her head down in shame like a guilty puppy.

“Yeah, shit, sorry..” Malia mumble, “please ignore us.” Cora continues laughing at the both of them, enjoying seeing Malia so apologetic for probably the first time ever. She so badly wanted to take a picture of the girl for future photographic evidence, but she’d probably claw her eyes out.

“No, no, it’s fine! Thank you guys for speaking up and voicing your concern against Lydia even though you’ve known her longer. I love you guys.” She runs both her hands through their hair to pass her scent onto them - truly showing that she isn’t upset or offended. She lightly taps on Kira’s laptop to direct her attention back to her paper on _“Electricity in a Modern Sense”_ and points Malia to the group of friendly hunters that she always sits with when they come in for drinks after a mission. 

Cora continues working the bar and serving orders for the rest of her shift. She gets a few minutes to relax for a bit when Malia takes over the bar and people stop ordering food because they’re full enough to not get super drunk. She sits on one of the vacant stools and shoots off multiple texts to the Pack, laughing at all their messages from earlier that she missed. Her laughter practically runs through the entire bar when she sees a picture of Stiles’s black eye that he received while trying to play basketball with one of Derek’s students. As everyone replied and talked to each other, despite the time differences, she realizes that Lydia hadn’t responded to any of their messages since yesterday afternoon. That prompts Cora to go to their own private messages where she also notices how the last time she talked to Lydia was this morning when she asked her to bring home some milk. 

Her mind began drifting to what Malia and Kira brought up earlier; her fingers paused over the screen as she stared into space, memories resurfacing of how she once briefly thought of the same things as them. It was one night, about three weeks ago, when Lydia woke her up from her sleep by ringing the doorbell nonstop of three in the morning. She claimed that she couldn’t find her keys despite them being in her hands and stumbled into the house so drunk that Cora felt intoxicated just being within a foot of her. She had helped the girl up the stairs, forced her to take a shower, and tucked her into bed, cuddling behind her for comfort. And right before she fell back asleep, her nose had caught the fading scent of a woman’s perfume. It was foreign, something that she knew wasn’t Lydia’s because the banshee was too picky to have more than two perfumes. Feelings of jealousy arrived but before they had the chance to settle, she quickly figured out that the scent must have been Violet’s seeing as Lydia had just spent a whole day with her. Then, before she could close her eyes, her thoughts jetted over to two days before when she picked up on another foreign, yet weirdly familiar, scent of a man on Lydia. She had just gotten home from breakfast with Garrett and Violet and Cora’s childish and modest amount of jealousy faded when she, again, realized that it must have come from her being with Garrett. 

Just like those weeks ago, she now feels extremely guilty and embarrassed for even thinking that Lydia not texting could be because of _anything_ related to what Kira and Malia suggested. She registers the sound of bells ringing and shakes herself out of her momentary trance, sending Lydia a short text before putting her phone away and getting back to work. She takes a small shot of whiskey, clearing her mind and happily going over to talk to the Pack of wolves that just took their seats at the bar.

**< I miss you.**

~

Lydia gets up from where she was sitting, stumbling over to the nearest bottle of wine. She needed another drink if she had to listen to Violet tell a story she had already heard two times before. She swallows about a third of the drink before refilling again and heading back to the expensive white lounge chairs that she spilt a glass of red on earlier. Violet’s not even halfway through her rant, complaining about some model that she swears was a _“total diva bitch”_ on the set of their photoshoot. Lydia doesn’t have the heart or energy to tell Violet that she’s overreacting, so she just continues to listen, or pretend to, to the same tale over and over. The dramatic girl’s acting career was actually hitting off, and to Lydia’s genuine surprise, the girl could actually act. Thanks to her money she was able to quickly insert herself into the social circles of young actresses and had already hired an A-list agent who was constantly sending her scripts and getting her top-notch auditions. Lydia had actually grown fond of Violet in these past weeks and realized that she actually did see her as a friend.

She was currently at a party with Violet and Garrett’s crowd who had easily become her own crowd now. They were pretty much all upper-class rich assholes who only cared about their careers, their promotions, their houses, and their vacations and Lydia _loved_ it. She loved being surrounded by people who she could talk money with, talk yachts and beach homes with. Sure, she could talk to Cora about this stuff, but Cora was _humble_ , and sometimes Lydia didn’t want to be humbled.

There was never anything like this in Beacon Hills. She wasn’t able to fully and happily relish in her fortune when she was younger. There was always a problem, always a fight, always a bigger battle to devote her time and spirit to. When she was on vacation, she couldn’t stay too long because bad guys could storm Beacon Hills at any moment and her Pack would need her. And when she was home, she couldn’t exactly live lavishly because she didn’t want to seem selfish. Sure, she sounds like a spoiled brat, but maybe she deserves to be one once in a while. The _minute_ her powers manifested, she was plunged head first into the dangerous, exhausting, and unhealthy world of the supernatural. She didn’t have the time like the others to be a goofy kid who just realized they have cool and unreal abilities. Everything had to be _perfect_ when it came to her - no slip-ups, no errors, no silly mistakes because the fate of the Pack always rested in the most powerful’s hands.

No one ever understood why she wanted to go so far away for college, and that’s because they never could. Her pack was full of wolves, wolves who wouldn’t be able to comprehend that she didn’t get to grow with or discover her abilities the way they did. They could learn about their fangs and their claws, bolt through the never-ending forest as their power flowed their souls and be the kings and queens of the supernatural world. On the other hand, she was a banshee-witch constantly fighting their battles and her own - the struggle to not be completely consumed by the dark power that swam through her. While the wolves prepared for a fight by roughhousing each other and whatever forest animals they could find, she prepared alone, secretly casting protective spells on every member of the Pack incase her deepest and darkest powers overpowered her and accidentally took them out too. Even when she got away from Beacon Hills, she found herself immersed in the supernatural world of Massachusetts. She grew to worship her abilities and she loved her Pack unlike anything else, but Lydia hadn’t realized how desperate she was for another change until she met Violet who around her, she didn’t have to be the powerful banshee-witch killing machine. She could just be Lydia, a regular girl. 

They were at a rooftop party, courtesy of Garrett’s coworker, Nathan, who had just gotten promoted at his father’s law firm. By the looks of him, she could tell that he had been getting positions that he didn’t deserve all his life, but the party was entertaining so she let herself have fun. This amount of drunk people on the roof of a thirty-floor building had to be an alarmingly high safety hazard, but money made even the most prude managers allow things. They had their music blasting loudly, not even batting an eye at the hotel near them, and everyone was dancing despite not knowing how to dance. Some of Boston’s most elite were in attendance, practically shoving an NDA in the face of anyone that even glanced their way to prevent their most dirty secrets from being exposed. It seemed that every minute that passed by, more and more people exited the elevator and joined the fun. 

There was a blonde sitting near her, knocking back shots of rum and bawling her eyes out because her father just died and left her older brother a bigger inheritance than her. She had to be about nineteen, definitely too young to be at this party, but who was Lydia to judge when she was the same age? Over by the pool, some unbearable athlete wearing a painfully hideous blood red speedo was talking about his winning touchdown or goal or a free throw or whatever to a group of men who were all pretending to be interested so they could sleep with him. By the bar, the cocaine-addicted son of some Hollywood blockbuster director was sniffing and sipping everything in his sight, taking breaks to flirt with the bartender who was shamelessly judging them all. Lydia watched and observed the people in the room and wanted to give herself a pat on the back. She just wanted an escape every once in a while, a fun evening, but these people were all so fucked up and she enjoyed laughing at them.

“What’s so funny?” Garrett asks as he takes a seat next to her. He had a glass of whiskey in his hand, truly showing how much older he was than she and Violet.

“How ridiculously insufferable and self-centered these people are.” She answers, giggling when inheritance blondie lets out a rather loud sob.

Garrett chuckles, “If you don’t like it then why are you here?”

“I never said I didn’t like it.” She admits, winking in his direction. He watches her and she pretends not to notice, turning her head in the opposite direction.

“I was really … _intrigued_ to meet you, you know.” Lydia turns back to face him, raising her eyebrows in surprise at his words. 

“And why’s that?” She leans forward.

“Violet just would not _shut_ _up_ about you. She would come home all stressed about class and also about your judgment. In the time that I was with her, she hadn’t cared for anyone’s opinion beside her father’s. At first I didn’t pay attention, thinking she’d just get over it in a few days, then I found out more things about you and it all clicked. A person who bothered my Violet so much was someone I _had_ to meet because it would give me the insight into her emotions that she never would.” He took another sip of his drink, his eyes darting behind Lydia to his fiancé who was still talking to her group of admirers.

“I’m still not seeing why you were so _“intrigued”_ to meet me,” Lydia says, swirling her finger around the rim of her glass.

“Because I realized that Violet was intimidated and jealous of you. You got to her head, got to her self-confidence and that showed me that’s what allowed me to see that she was truly bothered by something. That she was human. Before you, she was like this impenetrable robot who was programmed to always be super cocky and … bitchy, but I loved her so I let it slide. That night of our engagement party, when I saw the way she treated your girlfriend, I absolutely wanted to break up with her. I was disgusted, so upset that she’d allow jealousy to warp her like that.” 

“Oh, come on, she didn’t like me for reasons other than some petty jealousy! She came into class with a shit-eating grin on her face after you proposed and invited me to her your engagement party despite us never having one positive conversation. _That_ had to be something other than regular jealousy.” Lydia couldn’t believe that Violet was simply just jealous of her with the way she once acted.

“ _I_ told her to invite you. It was the only way I thought of where I could finally meet you and when I did, my observations proved to be right. You were beautiful, excelling in the classes she was failing, younger, also wealthy, and also in a relationship. You were what her father always begged her to be.” Lydia could only manage a hum in response as she took in everything Garrett said. Weeks ago she would have been ecstatic at this news, it would have been **Lydia 2 and Violet 0** , but now she just feels bad for not realizing that the girl was just hurting. That all those times she thought Violet was “challenging” her, she was just trying to prove to herself that she could be who her father wanted.

“That night when she opened up to you? That was the best thing she could've done for herself. And you two becoming close? Another amazing thing. You allowed her to become a better person, to stop seeing every other successful woman as who she _has_ to be, and to begin living for herself. For that, I thank you.” He rests his hand on her shoulder before knocking his glass against hers again so they can drink together. Lydia’s heart feels heavy, happy that she could have that positive effect on Violet without even knowing it, but also regretful that she ever allowed herself to once despise Violet the way she did.

They remain silent. Garrett looking over the party and talking to people who come and greet him as Lydia sits with her thoughts. She wants to laugh because if she’s being honest, she was jealous of Violet too. She also saw her as competition and felt like she needed to constantly prove herself. They were both consumed by an envy that prevented a great friendship from forming earlier. 

“Hey, next weekend we’re going to Veg-” Garrett’s interrupted by his phone ringing, “sorry, hold on, let me take this.” She smiles, letting him know it’s alright. He gasps in response to whatever the person tells him and bursts into a wild and joyful laugh. Lydia takes the time to get another glass of wine or champagne or anything tasty. She settles on a rosé, happily fulling her glass a little more than necessary before inserting herself into a nearby conversation about what parts of Europe Harley, a recent Yale grad, should travel to. 

“-not sure what parts of Italy yet!”

Lydia gasps, “You absolutely _have_ to go to Otranto! It’s one of the most beautiful places on this planet!” She’s a little loud, but she doesn’t care because she’s tipsy and more people need to know about Otranto! Harley spins around squeals, enveloping her in a tight hug and causing Lydia to spill a little bit of her drink. They hadn’t had more than five conversations, but Harley has the tendency to think that everyone is her best friend after one conversation.

“I’ve never even heard of this place!” She muses, instantly pulling her phone out to Google.

“Harley, it’s _amazing_ , trust me. I try and make it my mission to go every sum-” 

“She visits almost every summer and will be devastated when anyone who travels to Italy doesn’t go.” Lydia’s ears perk up at the sadly familiar voice that finished her sentence. Her smile falters and she has to quickly mentally prepare before turning around to greet the owner of said voice. 

“I’ll find you later to continue this conversation.” She says to Harley and her friends with a fake grin, going in for quick hugs. She feels and hears him move from behind her as he comes to stand in Harley’s place. They’re face to face again and Lydia honestly wants to throw her drink in his face.

“You must really love Boston, huh?” She says sarcastically, rolling her eyes at his fucking smirk.

Jackson shrugs, stealing her wine glass and taking a sip. “Ew, you know I hate rosé,” he grimaces, handing her glass back before she has the chance to grab it. 

“Do I even have to ask?” She groans.

He chuckles, “I chose to do all my exams early, so my freshman year is over one month in advance. I have nothing to do in England until September so I figured I’d go home early.” He shrugs again like it’s no big deal and Lydia aggressively rolls her eyes.

“Well, I think you got off at the wrong stop because this isn’t _home_ , Jackson. You’re a few thousand miles away from Beacon Hills.”

He steps in a bit closer. “Maybe I wanted to see you first … practice my fake British accent on you before I presented it to the Pack.” Lydia hits him on the chest, pushing him away so she doesn’t have to smell his favorite cologne.

“Jackson, come on. You can’t keep doing this. I-”

“This could have been my home.” He steps forward again.

Lydia bursts out into an angry laugh, shaking her head, “ _Yeah_ , well, you didn’t want it to be, remember?”

“I miss you.” He uses two fingers to play with a couple strands of her hair, twirling them around and around.

“ _Jackson,_ ” Lydia pleads, hating that he’s already making her blush.

“I want you.” He murmurs, looking down at her and capturing her big green eyes with his pale blues.

“I love you.” He breathes out, staring deep within her soul, his breath hitching when she grabs the collar of his shirt, bringing him closer to her and smashing her mouth into his. It should have been messy, and breathy and weird seeing as neither had kissed the other in what feels like a lifetime, but it wasn’t. It was soft, yet sexy and heated and needy and they both tasted like French wine from the thirties and Lydia only wanted more as she pressed her body against his. He grabbed both sides of her face, practically running after her mouth when she pulled away, the both of them breathing heavy and searching the other’s face for any sign of regret or disgust. Lydia backed away first, spotting a nearby waiter and quickly snatching a flute of champagne off his tray and downing it in one gulp. She gives the server both of her glasses when she’s done, still breathless from the kiss as she grabs onto the railing for support. She was gripping it tightly, letting the beauty of the city stop her from bursting out into tears at that exact moment. She could feel him get closer behind her and he pressed his body against hers, his hands going over her own as he gripped onto the railing too. The sudden rush of emotion awoke her resting energy, and she was almost vibrating with power. 

Jackson began scenting her, bending to rub his cheek over hers, lightly purring in her ear and Lydia’s stomach sank. He dragged a fang over her neck, applying a slight amount of pressure and licking over the spot and she struggled to not let out a whimper, bending her neck to give him better access. Jackson did things to her that she couldn’t describe, that she wanted to never stop. 

“Let me show you how much I love you. I’ll go get the car and you can meet me in the lobby.” He whispers, kissing her cheek. The warmth against her back disappears when he walks away. Her heart is racing and she can’t really think because all that’s going through her head is Jackson, Jackson, Jackson, Jackson. 

“You okay, Lyds?” She recognizes Violet’s voice from behind her. Violet’s worried when she faces her - her eyes scan over Lydia’s face, and she steps closer to hug her. 

“I’m not here to judge you.” She whispers into her ear and Lydia can’t help the tear that escapes. She holds onto Violet tighter because she really, really wants a hug right now. Violet gives her another once-over, hold and rubbing her Lydia’s hand before walking away. 

Lydia takes a deep breath before making her way over to the elevators. She hits the lobby button, only now noticing that her hands were shaking. She watches the numbers count down to one and takes multiple deep breaths before exiting. She sees Jackson through the shiny glass doors in the lobby. He’s standing outside with a sleek black sports car behind him, a small smile on his face as he looks off into the distance. Lydia walks out the doors and she immediately spots the subway sign shining brightly to her left. She knows she could make it to the last train for the night. She could make it home and shower and curl up with the woman waiting for her at home and forget that this night ever happened. Then she turns back to Jackson and he’s nervous. He’s fiddling with his fingers and trying to do his stupid cocky smirk but he’s too fucking nervous. She had only seen him this way twice before. Once when they were about to have sex for the first time and then when he was trying to tell her that he loved her for the first time. Lydia felt her phone vibrate in her purse. She broke eye contact with the man and realized that her fingers were less shaky as she read the text.

**> I miss you.**

**< The party’s still going strong and I’m gonna miss the last train so I’ll sleep at Violet’s. See you tomorrow.**

~

The thing that Lydia loved about living in the city was the constant buzz. There was always a noise; a firetruck blurring through the always crowded streets, college kids walking home and still singing the songs they danced to at their parties, dogs endlessly barking, some drunk white guy getting arrested for public indecency. Lydia loved to sit outside and listen to it all, take it all in. She would tap into her abilities and snoop around in nearby conversations, making sure to only listen to the funny and stupid ones and not anything too personal. It allowed her a better distraction than music or a reality tv show ever could, and she especially needed that distraction now. She was sitting outside on the unnecessarily huge balcony in Jackson’s hotel suite. Her lacy red underwear and a hotel blanket wrapped around her shoulders were the only things stopping her from baring her body to everyone that was staying across the street in the high rise condos. She was tuning in to anything she could while lifting and manipulating random objects on the ground with the lazy lift of a finger. She didn’t know what to think or what to do. Everything just happened so fast. One minute she was at a party, the next she was getting ready to argue with him and then she was in his bed. She was so confused. It took her awhile to really accept what she had done and when she did, she couldn’t stop repeating it over and over in her head.

She had sex with Jackson.

She cheated on Cora.

Jackson was inside, sound asleep on the bed that she just slept with him on. They rolled and fooled around in the sheets like they did at sixteen. She smiled and she giggled and she allowed him in. She allowed him to see her in the same way her girlfriend did. When he felt too far she pulled him in closer, chasing his lips and riding the tumultuous waves of orgasms and bliss with the person she swore was her past while her present and future laid at home. The worst part? She liked it. She didn’t want it to end. She enjoyed and asked for it. She loved him.

Cora was one of the best things in her life. Her first relationship that wasn’t ever supposed to end. Cora was the reason she found her true family. Cora was what she once saw as her constant, someone that would never leave her side or her mind no matter what happened. They had a connection that she thought was unlike anything else until she met Jackson. He was initially a distraction and a shameless toy for revenge. She used him with the sole intention of hurting Cora, but ended up hurting herself when she developed feelings for him. She began to realize that he was so much more than some hot, rich athlete. He was funny and caring and sweet and so fucking cocky that it turned her on. They were good for a while when she actually began to love him, but things founded on bad intentions always end the way they began. She hurt him, so he made sure to hurt her back and by the end of everything, Lydia had lost the two people whose love no one else’s would ever compare to.

Jackson being in Boston scared and hurt her because not only did it revive their break up, but also the events that took place when she first arrived. She was completely alone for the first time in years. No Stiles to talk her head off, no Allison and Erica to go shopping with, no Derek to bother and prank, no Talia and Laura to cook with, no Deaton to train with, no Pack. She was lonely and her big expensive house with fancy furniture and her designer clothes couldn’t get rid of that. She broke down one night and ended up calling Jackson at three in the morning. She was hysterical, her hands shaking as she felt her power making the ground quiver beneath her. She begged him to do something, begged him to leave Oxford or allow her to come to England. Jackson didn’t know what to do or say, especially being nowhere near the girl. He just talked to her about anything that crossed his mind - the stray cat that he began leaving food for, the weird English “pastries”, how much better the pubs were than American bars, and whatever else he could think of. They continued on like that for almost three months, and eventually, conversations went from stray cats to getting back together. Things we’re looking up for the former couple until Lydia got back in contact with Cora. Cora who promised her an immediate fix by being willing to move to Boston faster than Jackson ever would. Lydia realized that she didn’t have to be alone for any longer. Cora was able to quickly quell her loneliness, so she left Jackson high and dry and began the facade of choosing to get back with Cora. Yet, here she is, sitting on his hotel balcony and sweaty from sex.

“Why are you crying?” She hadn’t even realized she was until hearing his groggy voice, thick with sleep, come from behind her. He crept up closer, his eyes trailing down to her when she tipped her head back to look at him. He was rubbing his eyes lazily, and the cuteness managed to make the girl smile despite having tears running down her face. He cups her face in his face, leaning down terribly low to kiss her gently on her lipstick stained lips. They stayed like that for a few seconds before he sat down in the soft balcony chair next to her. Lydia laughed fondly at the creases and lines on his face, wiping her tears and rubbing her forehead at the same time.

“Tell me what’s on your mind.” He whispers, looking away from the shining billboard and towards her. Lydia lets out a heavy breath, childishly flapping her lips in the process. She didn’t have any words to voice what exactly she was thinking and feeling. Everything was just a mush of untamed emotions.

“Why are you here Jackson?” Is all she can say. It feels like she’s asked him this multiple times but his answer is never acceptable.

“Because I love you, Ly-”

She groans, shaking her head, “No, Jackson, why are you really here?” She pleads, wishing she had a bottle of _anything_ in her hands right now to down.

“Because I fucking love you, Lydia! How many times do I have to say it?” He raises his voice like he always does when he gets slightly irritated with her.

“Because it isn’t true, Jackson! It’s not true!” She yells back, her voice overpowering his own as she wildly gets up from the chair and storms inside the room. She makes a beeline for the fully stocked bar and starts rummaging through the mini fridge. Luckily for her, Jackson enjoys expensive bottles of wine as much as she does and she quickly pops the cork out of the first bottle her eyes land. When she stands back up, he’s standing across from her looking almost like a customer at a bar and she has to chuckle.

“Why is it so hard for you to accept that I love you?” The impact of the question stops her immature laughter. He’s stone-faced, staring straight into her eyes and Lydia’s heart drops.

“You’re the most beautiful and amazing woman in my world, yet you won’t believe that I could love you the way I do.” He moves a step closer.

“You didn’t love me before. You didn’t love me when you broke up with me.” She whispers, trying to stop herself from crying.

“Lydia, come on, you know I did. But I was stupid and angry and _seventeen_ for fuck’s sake! Don't you think I loved when we first got together? Or even when I realized that I was just a rebound? And when you left??” Lydia puts the wine down and places her hands on the counter for support.

“Ok, so what is you coming here and _loving_ me going to solve?” She already knows what he’s going to say but she needs to hear it from his mouth before she can believe it.

“I want to transfer. I want to go to Harvard and live here, with you, in Boston like we were supposed to. I was stupid, Lyds, so fucking stupid to let you go.” At the words, Lydia runs from behind the counter and into his arms. He presses her snuggly against his chest and they’re both crying and she prolongs their embrace for as long as possible because she knows what she has to do when they detach. After five minutes she grabs his hands, leading him to the large sitting area. He sits and she stands, because if she stays any closer to him, what needs to be said never will be.

“Jackson I can’t let you do that.” She whines.

He lunges forward in the seat, “Lydia, no,”

“No, let me finish!” She overpowers him, holding her hand out and stopping him dead in his tracks. His pupils shift vertically along with the yellowing of his irises and his monstrous teeth begin showing like they always do when she uses her power to restrain him. She hates doing it because his inner wolf and kanima immediately begins fighting back against her power and it pains him, but it’s the only way. If Jackson wraps her in his arms one more time she’ll never be able to let him go.

“You can’t leave Oxford. Not for _me_. Ok, you love me, but I can’t love you the way you deserve. I’m in love with both you and Cora at the same time and that isn’t fair to either of you.” She takes a deep breath, trying her best to gather her many swirling thoughts.

“Those months ago, I tried rekindling our relationship out of lonesomeness and desperation and when you couldn’t get here fast enough, I ran to Cora instead who gave me quicker solutions. I didn’t know how to be alone without either of you there and it wasn’t fair of me to lead you on then leave you without answers when Cora got to me first. Oxford and England are _so_ amazing for you Jackson. I’m so unbelievably proud of you and no matter how much I love you, I won’t make you give that up for me. It’s what you’ve always wanted and I don’t think I can handle ever having you hate me again for holding you back.” Lydia runs over to the bedroom, throwing back on her clothes and maintaining his stiffness with simple mental manipulation. She’s crying heavier now than before, tears blurring her sight, as she picks up all her things that flew out of her purse and onto the floor. She makes it back to him when she gathers everything, standing closer to him than before. 

“I love you Jackson, I do, and I probably always will. But as long as I love you, I’ll always love her too. Let me go. _Please_ , let me go, Jackson. Find someone else.” She whispers tearily, watching a single tear fall from his still face. She presses a final kiss to his lips, briefly resting her hand on his face before running out of the door and allowing him to move again. She puts a temporary spell on the door, locking it for five hours and makes her way to a taxi. She’s a mess, she’s sobbing in the backseat, and she doesn’t even care that the driver is watching her the entire time.

“Do you need me to call the police, ma’am? Were you hurt?” He asks her, pressing his foot on brakes and preparing to pull over. Lydia tries her best to smile, wiping her tears and shaking her head.

“No, no, it’s nothing like that. I just broke up with with … my, um,” He nods in understanding and continues driving before she has the time to think up what exactly she’d call Jackson. He turns to radio up for her and she’s practically ready to bite her fingernails off when she begins noticing how close they are to home. How close they are to her breaking Cora’s heart.

~

It’s weird how words can completely change something in the span of minutes. How things can go from radiant and loving to dreadful and inconsolable in the blink of an eye. After the heart break she went through multiple times, Lydia once swore to herself that she’d never be the one to hurt her partner. She knew what it felt like to devote yourself to someone only for them to play you like a fool. She knew what it felt like to not see something coming for miles only to have it thrown in your face unexpectedly. But here she is, doing all the things she swore she’d never do. Cora was sitting against their headboard, her arms curled across her knees and her chin rested on them. She only had on a white t-shirt and her hair was an unruly and frizzy mess seeing as she was in a deep sleep when Lydia woke her. Lydia was standing at the foot of their bed, the strap of her dress falling off one shoulder, her wild bed head all over the place, and mascara smeared under her eyes.

She had run into the house and explained everything to the sleepy girl. She told her all that she needed to say; told her of the falsity of their reconciliation, how she originally wanted Jackson to come to Boston, their breakfast meeting, the kiss at the party, their sex, that she broke things off with him, but most importantly that she still loved him. Cora never left the bed the entire time, just listened and slightly nodded her head at moments. Lydia had no idea what the girl was thinking and she wanted to be patient and give her time to process this all, but the silence was quickly killing her.

“I _thought_ I smelt a familiar scent of a man on you after that breakfast date,” she nods, “but I just couldn’t place the person because I was so distracted by the news of finally getting a job. A job that I was pressured to take because of your standards.” 

She lets her legs go and swings her head back, laughing loudly when she bumps it on the headboard. “I guess Kira and Malia were kind of correct. They guessed you were cheating, but just guessed the wrong lover.” She continues to laugh and Lydia begins feeling agitated.

“This isn’t funny, Cora.” 

“No, it isn’t, but I’m the victim right now so I can laugh if I fucking want to.” She snaps back, her eyes flashing yellow. Lydia jumps back a few steps and Cora pays it no mind. She finally gets off the bed and heads into their bathroom. Lydia sits down on the ottoman, her head falling into her hands in defeat. She realizes the amount of commotion coming from their closet and hurries in, her eyes widening at the sight.

“Cora where are you going?? It’s four in the morning!” Cora’s stuffing a few of her favorite clothing items in her suitcase and Lydia wants to tackle her to the ground to stop her. She’s ignored by the wolf and Lydia doesn’t even dare using her power to stop her when she spots a few batches of fur sprouting on the nape of the girl’s neck. 

“Cora don’t do this. I’ll sleep in one of the other bedrooms and we can speak more about this when we get up.” She pleads, stepping further into the closet. The girl scoffs, zipping up her luggage and zooming past the distressed red head and back into their bedroom. Lydia rushes after her, watching her pull on a random pair of jeans and her favorite sneakers. She doesn’t know what to do, she doesn’t know how to stop her from putting on her bra and changing into an acceptable top. She fixes her messy ponytail and puts her laptop into it’s own bag and Lydia wants to scream, she wants to grab onto her girlfriend’s hands and stop her from leaving but she can’t. It’s too late. Cora only pauses to prevent herself from transitioning any further, to stop herself from clawing at the walls in fury. 

“Cora! Stop this!” Lydia yells, rushing forwards and stopping in her tracks when the girl whips around, her eyes a different shade of yellow than she’s ever seen before.

“ _Shut up!_ Just shut the fuck up, Lydia! This isn’t about you anymore, ok? I’m so fucking _pissed_ right now … do you understand that?? I’m fucking fuming right now because as much as I want to _hate_ you, I can’t. I absolutely hate that I still love you right now, that I just want to hold you and shower you with love and forgiveness.” 

Lydia lets out a quivering sob, “I’m so sorry, Cora. I-I wish I could take back what I did.” She holds her hands out, hoping that the girl will take them, but she doesn’t even glance down.

Cora shakes her head, “No you don’t. You love him. And in some twisted way you love me too and that isn’t fair to either of us. You _used_ me, Lydia. You used me as his easy replacement just like you did to him to spite me all those years ago. You can’t pick and fucking _choose_ when you want to switch off on two people! People aren’t your toys or your temporary fixes to isolation. You _chose_ to leave Beacon Hills where everyone that loves you is! I left my home, my family, my _Pack_ for you, Lydia! I left that all behind because I thought you were actually ready to revisit the love I thought we still had for one another. Do you know how much that took out of me? To leave my family after everything we’ve all been through? Why do you think my mom had to force Derek to go after Stiles? Because Hales are meant.to.be.in.Beacon. Hills. But I left! I left for you. And this is what you do to me?” Cora’s tone goes from outrage to despair by the end and she laughs again, gripping onto her belongings tighter before leaving the room and running down the stairs. Lydia chases after her, practically tripping over her feet in the hurry to catch up to an angry wolf. 

“Cora, please _wait_! Where are you going to go?” Lydia’s terrified. Her breath is labored and she feels close to hyperventilating.

“I’m going home, Lydia. I can’t stay here because if I do, I’ll forgive you and you don’t deserve that. Not from me. Not even from Jackson.”

“Cora I love you so much, please understand that. I _never_ wanted to hurt you.” She has the hiccups now and her heart’s beating so fast it might just fly through her mouth.

Cora stops, twisting around right before turning the knob on the door. “Just tell me one thing, Lydia,” She pauses. Her eyes trailing the entirety of the girl’s body as she smells everything that she’s feeling. She knows that the banshee is sorry and regretful, the smell is drifting off of her in waves but that isn’t enough. “How long would you have kept this from me?”

“Cora I just slept with him and I ran home to tell you this now. I-”

Cora lifts her hand to stop her, “No. How long would have kept it from me that I was your second choice?” The banshee’s heart drops. She had planned to never reveal this to Cora as long as they stayed together, never wanting to admit that she had initially run back to Jackson.

“I …” she stammers, having absolutely no idea what to say and giving Cora the answer she needed. She nods, opening the door to make her way out. As she steps onto the last step, she turns her head and stares at the distraught girl in the doorway. 

“I hope you forgive yourself for this. I wish for you to realize that you don’t need to replace every moment of aloneness with a relationship. I hope you learn to somehow live with yourself.” The car she called pulls in at the perfect moment. She packs her luggage into the trunk, taking her time because she knows the girl will be standing in front of her when she finishes. She slowly closes the trunk, turning to face Lydia one last time.

“Cora, I-” She starts.

“Let me go, Lydia. Tell Malia I’m sorry.” Cora whispers, getting into the backseat and telling the driver to pull off. She doesn’t turn back to stare at the girl because she can’t trust herself to run back if she sees her again. She doesn’t want to cry, refuses to let go a tear until she’s in the safety of her true home. Everything’s a blur at the moment, she tries remembering all the words she said, but everything is just jumbled. She pulls her phone out, tries making multiple calls and sending out multiple texts to multiple people, but nothing makes sense. Her words are a mess and she can’t think right now. She wishes she could fucking run right now, wishes she could turn and dash through the woods, but she’s surrounded by a city that has always felt foreign no matter how much time she spent in it. This was never the place for her, but she was blinded by a girl she thought was her own.

They’re about fifteen minutes away from the house when she hears a bone shattering scream so loud and clear one would think Lydia was sitting right next to her. It sounds almost like a city-wide siren, like a noise out of movies to signal the end of the world. Surrounding windows crack, cars slam on their breaks, cars crash others and people on the street all stop at the same time. Cora has to duck her head down to avoid her driver from seeing her claws and her exposed teeth that the scream of a banshee triggers in a wolf. She has goosebumps all over her body and curses herself as the tears begin flowing down her face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last official chapter! Next will be the epilogue and it'll be the end of this series. :)


	5. Epilogue

A “broken heart” is a weird thing. You’re overly emotional, not knowing whether to be angry or glum. Most days, Cora was both. She didn’t really know what to do with herself. Some days she wanted to run back all the way to Boston and scream in Lydia’s face. Then she’d want to stay in bed all day and try taking her mind off of everything with a shitty movie. Other days, she avoided almost everyone. Most of all, she was embarrassed. She was ashamed of herself, ashamed that she left everything and everyone that she loved behind in Beacon Hills to chase someone that ended up sending her away. Cora was hurt. She was angry. She was speechless.

When she finally arrived home, she had tried being quiet as she entered the Pack House, but before she even made it two steps towards the stairs, she heard lights turning on. Only Talia, Peter, Erica and the baby had been home at the time. Talia took one look at her daughter and knew everything had come crashing down. Cora was unlike herself, eyes puffy, skin pale, and body flooding with the stink of sorrow. She spent the night in her mother’s bed that night, crying her eyes out as Talia held and rocked her like she once did when the young wolf was a child with Erica hugging onto her from the other side. Cora only muttered the words _“I’m sorry”_ For the entire night and Talia nor Erica had no idea what was going on but they cared for her anyway. The next morning Cora woke up to hear whispered chatter, and she knew that the entirety of the Pack had been informed of her sudden arrival. She didn’t know how to face them and when she eventually did, she wanted to cry some more because she didn’t know how to explain this to anyone. But, luckily, she didn’t have to do it alone because the next day, Jackson arrived. They seemed to be in the same mental and emotional state. Cora wasn’t angry with him, she didn’t want to hit or hate him like she previously did when it came to anything involved with one Lydia Martin. He ran into her arms, sniffing and scenting her as he shouted out apologies, but Cora didn’t need that from him. She knew he wasn’t the one to blame. Just like her, he was in love with Lydia and was willing to do anything to keep her. 

The heartbroken duo spent the entirety of the month together. Cora would never have guessed it, but without Jackson, she doesn’t think she’d be able to recover the way she did. Everyone else tried with their advice and their shoulders to cry on, but no one could truly understand the pain that Cora and Jackson were experiencing. He was suddenly shut out from the love of his life and Cora had walked out on the love of hers. For years, the two avoided each other's friendship due to their shared love for the same person, and neither would’ve thought that the agony caused by said person would have brought them together.At first, Jackson thought the best thing for them to do was to sex everything away. He proposed for them to go clubbing and find beautiful girls, and even men for _him_ , to hook up with, but Cora knew that wasn’t the way. You couldn’t solve something like this with worthless sex. It couldn’t be pushed away or avoided - it had to be confronted and dealt with if they ever wanted to stand a chance at recovery. So, they released their hurt together. They ran, bolted and drifted through the expansive amount of green in their backyard. They cried together under the midnight stars, ranted and cursed and howled at the always watching moon. They laughed about the bad times and reminisced over their good times with Lydia. And eventually, they both forgave and truly began to move on together.

It had been exactly a month and six days since everything that went down … and Lydia would be arriving back in town in one day for Boyd and Erica’s wedding. Cora didn’t exactly know how to process that when she first got the news, so she kept herself busy. She ran around town, picking up supplies and setting them up wherever Erica demanded. She worked a few hours with Allison at the shop then would run over to Deaton and train with him for the rest of the day. She had gotten into the groove of city life and slacked on her fitness during her time in Boston, so when she heard that Lydia would be arriving soon, she decided to get back into her workout routine. It wasn’t to impress or make Lydia jealous or anything, but it provided her with a much-needed distraction when there were no more weapons to sell to Fae or babies breath flowers to pick. Jackson, on the other hand, had maintained his strict training schedule in England, so he found his distraction in the men and woman of Beacon Hills like he originally wanted to.

Cora was currently sitting on the porch, soaking up the final moments of the sun before it went down. Her leg was bouncing up and down, anxious about everything that would be happening in a days time. She listened and watched as a car entered the estate and made its way to the driveway and before she knew it, an overly excited Stiles came jumping her way. He dove into her lap, wrestling his bony ass on her thighs and snuggling himself in her arms. He brought a smile to her face and she couldn’t hold back from pushing her face into his wild hair, fondly sniffing and scenting him. Derek and Laura followed much slower and calmer, talking amongst themselves before Derek joined in on his sister’s and fiancé’s embrace. Stiles was still holding onto her when Derek detached himself and leaned against a banister, smiling as Laura snapped a quick picture.

“I’m so sorry about everything that’s happened, Cora,” Stiles mumbled sadly, kissing her cheek and walking into Derek’s open arms. Her brother’s arms went around Stiles’s waist and she watched as their bodies seemed to fit into one another’s like puzzle pieces. 

“Didn’t you two get the memo to not be super romantic and coupled up near someone getting through heartbreak?” She joked, laughing. Stiles’ eyes went wide and he scooted away from his fiancé and towards Laura who was rolling her eyes. Derek got the joke and laughed, pulling the smaller man back into his arms.

“Seriously, how are you, Co? How’s Jackson? I’m sorry we couldn’t get here earlier.” Derek cut in, shooting her his worried look that sometimes came off as a creepy, yet adorable at the same time.

She looked around at all three Derek, Stiles and Laura, “I’m good. Honestly. I won’t say I’m “perfect” or completely over her and what happened, because I don’t think neither me or Jackson ever will be, but … we’re getting through this. It’s tough, but I’m good. I’m happy finally being back where I belong.” She could practically feel Derek and Laura listening to her heartbeat, waiting to point out a lie, but they wouldn’t find out because she was telling the truth. It’s been a battle, but she feels close to winning.

“We love you so much. And Jackson … and even Lydia. You’re all so young and _dumb_ and in love and there’s always going to be mistakes made with that equation.” Laura says, moving forward to lean down and wrap her arms around her little sister. 

“Yeah. Neither I or Jackson wants any of you to hate Lydia. She made horrible mistakes and she hurt us, but she’s Pack. _We_ don’t hate her.” She catches all of their eyes, making sure that they understand her. They all stayed silent, Cora’s words heavy on their minds. It was nice, she could feel the immense energy of love surrounding her and it was exactly what she needed. Just like before, she couldn’t run away from anything. She can’t push away Lydia’s impending arrival with busywork, but she could get through it with the love and support from the rest of the Pack; the only thing she’s ever truly needed.

“I’m happy! I missed everyone so much and meeting the newest addition to the Pack has made my year. Erica and Boyd are fucking _parents_ and getting married tomorrow and we’re all going to be together again! So, please don’t let any of this down our spirits!” She ruffles her sister’s hair and smiles affectionately at the love that Derek and Stiles exude.

“Now, go inside and kiss mom before she wolfs out on you two!” She shoots playfully pointed looks at Derek and Stiles, giggling at the kiss Laura gives her on her forehead before the three of them rush into the house. No more than five minutes later, Jackson comes flying through the front door, groaning as he makes himself comfortable on the top step.

“You smell like Stiles,” Cora observes, already laughing.

“Yeah because the little shit attacked me with hugs and kisses as if he mistook me for Derek!” They both burst into laughter, both smelling awfully like the energetic and loving human.

Jackson sighs, closing his eyes and turning his face up towards the sun. Cora watches him for a moment and notices the dark circles under his eyes. She can smell the sex and exhaustion in the air and she rushes down to sit with him. He pops open one eye, looking down at her before wrapping an arm around her and allowing her to rest her head on his shoulder.

“Meaningless sex isn’t going to fix anything.” She mumbles, keeping her voice soft and free of judgment.

“Yeah, I know, I just had to see if it _could_. Training to become America’s next ninja warrior isn’t going to fix anything either.” They laugh, snuggling more into the other for needed support.

“You ready to face her tomorrow?” 

“Nope.” She doesn’t even remember which one of them admitted it.

“Yeah … me either.”

~

_Fin._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the final piece of work for the Complications of the Heart two-part series. This story and my variations of these characters have been with me since October of 2017, so it's pretty crazy and a wee bit sad, to be finished with them now. This was my first time writing fanfiction and I couldn't have enjoyed it any more than I did. I hope any and everyone that read either the first part, this part, or both enjoyed and loved these stories as much as I did! Xx.

**Author's Note:**

> This took way longer than expected, so sorry about that but it was a lot to write! I decided to continue with Cora and Lydia's story because the fact that they still loved one another really intrigued me. I'm going for only about five chapters for this part, either including or not including an epilogue. I hope everyone that reads this enjoys chapter one because I'm really excited about this part and I'm hoping for chapter 2 to be up in the next week or so! Xx.


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